City
Montesano
USA
This small town just north of Aberdeen was home to the Melvins, whose pioneering sludge-metal sound and DIY ethos directly influenced the entire grunge movement. Buzz Osborne and Dale Crover's experiments with downtuned, Black Sabbath-influenced heaviness after witnessing Black Flag's 1984 transformation created a template that Kurt Cobain and other Aberdeen/Montesano area musicians absorbed through local shows and tape trading. The Melvins' departure for Washington and then California helped spread this Pacific Northwest sound beyond its rural origins.