Big hair, big riffs, big sound, big influence on Kurt Cobain. The progenitors of the whole Seattle grunge scene bring their concrete chainsaw guitar buzz to O2 Academy after tearing up the Institute last year. Imagine your skull being relentlessly pummelled into the ground by a ten ton jackhammer and you’ll get some idea of the blitzkrieg power of Buzz Osborne’s pneumatic trio. The rapacious sludge noise of debut album ‘Gluey Porch Treatments’ has never been equalled. More than twenty albums later albums such as ‘A Walk with Love & Death’ continue the sledgehammer onslaught of dirty scuzz noise. Utterly unique in style, sound and appearance. The Melvins are here to make your brains bleed. Ear plugs can’t save you now. You might want to bring a torch to locate your senses on the floor afterwards. Support comes from the incredible Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.

Tue 23 Oct 7pm at The O2 Academy, 16-18 Horse Fair, Birmingham B1 1DB £31.50 www.ticketmaster.co.uk