Meltdown

Every Meltdown show started with the same introduction (which is also the first track on this LP, as well as the out-of-print 7")--a jabbing song which screams and yelps the sole word "Meltdown." The track was a challenge (some might say threat)--one that often left the room emptier by its end. By speaking their boundaries in this manner, the band was able to set into the rest of their complicated and clinging songs with all the strength and presence of someone who has taken something away from a less deserving owner. This act of claiming/reclaiming has always been linked to rebellions. In terms of punk, it is as simple as the snatching away of rock from FM radio and the arena in the 1970's by countless bands, and the subsequent re-invention whenever things fell back into stagnancy. This gesture was inherent in Meltdown, although there was a subversion even more basic within the group's structure. Three teenage girls playing guitar without strumming, without hesitation; a drummer who never played a single rhythm that you recognized; no bass; vocals only when necessary, and then an attack. It seemed as though sometimes before the band began their set they were met with the blunt dumbfoundedness that so often faces something new or challenging. When Meltdown would bring Chuck Bettis (All Scars; Trance and the Arcade) onstage for "Gutter Up," it was a beautiful undoing of the typical girl band; i.e. all male musicians and a female vocalist. It was a reverse that made watchers uncomfortable in a way that they couldn't always recognize, although they rarely hesitated to voice this discomfort. Provocation is a notable act in underground circles. However, it is usually tied to violence, a violation of physical space or baiting and insulting. In this case, the band's identity was enough for most people. For the band, in the midst of the confusion and judgement, it was enough to play. The time spent perfecting parts, filling out ideas and completing flawless songs fulfilled Meltdown's intentions.

In fact, there were never really even any plans to record--Guy Picciotto's offer to record them was taken up primarily because of the ease in doing so. The live 4-track recording made by Brendan Canty exists simply because the machine was already set up in order to record the All Scars set that night. Such good fortune seemed to demand a more widespread presentation. When the 7" was released in 1997 on Slowdime records, it furthered the confusion already demonstrated at their live shows. At the time "no wave" was not in common usage, the Scissor Girls were not a valid reference point, and the guitar belonged strictly to boys. Riot Grrrl was successfully warped and defeated by both the mainstream and underground media, and the idea of an all-female band seemed a little out of place. The Slits became a common comparison, which--although apt in the recognition of a similar opposition and resistance--didn't pay much attention to songwriting or complexity. The suggestion is that such an all-female threat seemed out of place in the 1990's, which of course lends truth to the notion that it is all the more necessary now. The Map, not quite a reissue and not quite historical, is built out of the remaining tracks from their Pirate House session and an accurate live show. It is being released as a continuation of the challenge made during their time together as much as it is a further demonstration of the strength of their songwriting and the fantastic songs made in a basement in Mount Pleasant, D.C. These are not "leftovers" from the single, they are rather the LP that should have come out in the first place. To remind us that "new" is still possible in an era of mimicry, to demonstrate that girls can draw more out of a guitar than their power-chord reliant counterparts, to show the power and tension of multiple tiny rhythms, to allow these songs a chance to be discovered and inspire is the greatest hope of this release.

During the production of The Map, a testimonial of sorts appeared in the zine Jigsaw (issue #7) by Tobi Vail. In full:

Sometime around 1996 their was an all teenage girl band from Washington D.C. called Meltdown. They made some of the most innovative songs filled with no wave sounds and simple parts that sounded utterly unlike anything I had actually heard before but seemed strangely familiar, this music contained elements of ideas I had imagined in my brain but had been unable to execute for at least a decade--notey guitars, shouted out voices, psycho lyrics and creepy delivery (think if Patty Waters was in a teenager in a 90's punk band), chopped up melody, a rhythm developing via guitars and voice as well as through the drums--similar to James Brown song arrangements, tension through repetition, strangely pretty melodies, eccentric personalities being expressed through stylistic choices...oh my, what I would have given to have seen them play live. Why didn't they come out on Bumpidee? Is it too late? They broke up to go to college or some such excuse but the point is this happened and it was spectacular, and there is a tape floating around somewhere as well as a 7", someone needs to put out their complete recordings and send me a copy. Too good to be forgotten.

The especially encouraging part is the depth of understanding of Meltdown's process and meaning, and suggests that the need for such a posthumous release might be stronger than any time before--that people may be more ready and more in need of an all female band creating these thoughtful and memorable outsider songs. In any case, we do believe these songs are too good to be forgotten and deserving of such release. Some notes on the production of the LP: The Map has been pressed in an edition of 500 copies on 150-gram vinyl; the covers were first hand silkscreened in two colors and then letterpressed by hand onto 100% post-consumer recycled paper; the cover and insert were designed by Meltdown guitarist Amy Heneveld; small (11" x 6") posters are available.

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