Melted

One advantage to being a purveyor of dirty, loud, garage rock is that you can churn out records faster than the next band. Ditto if you are pretty much a one-man operation. Melted is Segall’s third full-length outing in two years, fitting neatly in among various singles, EPs and continuing Segall’s trajectory through the feral family tree of rock ’n’ roll. Originally working in a hard-hitting, reverb-soaked, Sonics vein, here Segall peels back a little of the grime to reveal even more of his true pop songwriting skill, and colors the collection with more lysergic fuzz than garage grease.  Segall and studio friends (John Dwyer of Thee Oh Sees, Mike Donovan of Sic Alps and more) conjure late-period Beatles with “Sad Fuzz” and “Mrs.”, and evoke a good trip vibe with “Melted” and bad trip flashbacks with “Mike D’s Coke.” Songs like “Girlfriend,” “My Sunshine,” “Imaginary Person” grind and stomp as do the finest tunes in Segall’s catalog, and it’s the songwriting that lifts them to being more than a forgettable (but fun) burst of white-hot energy. Segall’s got all kinds of chops up his sleeve, and Melted is a strong showcase for the best of them.