Search - Mudhoney :: Mudhoney

THE Proto-grunge album

W. Merrette Moore | Chapel Hill- Home of The University of North Carol | 04/05/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When the masses wax philosophic on which album defined grunge the following albums would probably get the most prominent mention: Nirvana's "Nevermind", Pearl Jam's "Ten", Soundgarden's "Superunknown" or Alice In Chains's "Dirt". Truth of the matter is, none of these albums are really proto-grunge. "Nevermind" is punk-pop, "Ten" is Grand Funk Raiload-esque boogie pop rock, "Superunknown" is updated Zeppelin and "Dirt" is post-hair band metal.True "grunge" is the meshing of punk and blues and Mudhoney pulled it off best with this epynomous LP debut. The songs, with limited chords and intentionally boneheaded lyrics (the suicide tale "By Her Own Hand" being the notable exception) are peformed with immaculate sloppiness by each of the quartet's players. Guitarist Steve Turner, the Eric Clapton of grunge, spews forth the licks with controlled ferocity. Dan Peters is an ace with his "traps". Matt Lukin rumbles the band's sound forward with his gutteral bass. And Mark Arm punctuates the racket with his incredulous yelp.Standout cuts are "This Gift", "Flat Out F****d", "You Got It", "Running Loaded" and "By Her Own Hand". They are as good as grunge gets, even if the album didn't sell a million copies."

Going out on a limb

G. Rao | san francisco | 12/17/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'll go out on a limb, with hindsight on my side, and say that at one precious moment in time Mudhoney was the best rock band on the planet. Maybe not for very long, and perhaps too long ago to be of any real relevance right now, but for one brilliant moment, they were the ones carrying the torch that had passed hands from Ike Turner to Chuck Berry to Keith Richards to Iggy Pop, and on and on and so on from now until forever.



Mudhoney was loud & fast, obnoxious and wild, and yet simultaneously heart-wrenching and melodic.



They had long hair, wore thrift store clothes, and looked cool in b&w photos with guitars in their in hands.



This, the self titled album, might be their best one. "I got something waiting for you, that's right", whispers Mark Arm on "This Gift", and you gotta wonder what he's hiding behind that smirk. Take him up on his offer, and get this."

Not a bad song on this release

grnvk | Tinley Park, Illinois United States | 03/15/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is by far Mudhoney's best release. From top to bottom, a solid classic. The guitar sound along with the drum parts on this release are unforgettable-this CD made me want to play the drums. As far as the Seattle sound of this time, this has to be ranked up there as one of the top albums of that era. If you are interested in grunge but do not know where to start your collection, this is definitely the release from Mudhoney that you will want to pick up. If you have Soundgarden and Nirvana anywhere in your collection already, you will not be sorry if you pick this one up too."