You don't spend a few decades playing with the
Melvins and not learn a few things about making music that's heavy, and on
Dale Crover's second solo album, 2020's
Rat-A-Tat-Tat!, the band's longtime drummer (and occasional bassist) once again shows he has a real knack for coming up with a memorable hard rock song. At the same time, much like his 2017 effort
The Fickle Finger of Fate,
Crover also makes it clear he knows how to come up with a melody and a hook, and even though this is still full of the sort of eccentric experimentalism you might expect from a side project, the best moments here are engaging and accessible in a way many fans might not expect. "Shark Like Overbite" could almost pass for jangle pop with its punchy key chorus and bright guitar figure, the primarily acoustic "I'll Never Say" is an atmospheric exercise in spooky psychedelia reinforced by
Toshi Kasai's retro keyboards, and the choppy swagger of "Untrue Crime" plays like a shotgun wedding between blues rock and junkshop glam that unexpectedly works. (The vintage glam influences come back for an encore in the swampy but hard-stomping "The Bowie Mix.") Like
Fickle Finger of Fate,
Rat-A-Tat-Tat! was primarily performed by
Crover himself, who holds down drums, guitars, percussion, and lead vocals, but he also brought in some friends to help.
Steve McDonald's bass gives the tracks a sway and an oomph that feels good in this context, while
Kasai, who engineered and co-produced the set, contributes plenty of color and texture with his keyboard work. You might not expect the drummer would be the guy to introduce a pop sensibility to the
Melvins, and that description is probably going too far to make a point, but
Rat-A-Tat-Tat! is a reminder that
Crover has skills as a tunesmith and a performer that fall outside the traditional boundaries of his work in his main band, and there are plenty of welcome surprises here along with a few expected and well-executed sonic punches to the gut. ~ Mark Deming