Ben Berg from Montesano, Washington has been getting a lot of media attention lately for his eBay auction of particular pop culture significance involving Pacific Northwest seminal sludge-metal act the Melvins and Kurt Cobain of Nirvana fame - The Melvan.

“What is the Melvan?”

What makes this beast worth $90,000 and counting?

The Melvan just happens to be an iconic vessel of epic proportions in the Pacific Northwest’s history of rock & roll.  You see, it happens to be the very first touring vehicle for the influential band The Melvins and chartered around future members of grunge bands Mudhoney & Nirvana.  As a bonus, and the detail that is most prominently featured across the country in the media, Kurt Cobain‘s black Sharpie-adorned KISS mural across the driver’s side prominently displayed for all to see.  Cobain fans, rejoice.  It is legit.

“You say WHO drew that?!”

Kurt Cobain drew this KISS mural with a stolen sharpie.

Featured in many books, documentaries & local legend tales, the Melvan has held a special place in Ben’s heart for 20 years and has been a focal point of pride for the Montesano musical community.  It was given to him as a gift from original Melvins bassist Matt Lukin’s mother, knowing Ben was a die-hard fan, in 1992.  Ben’s old band No Talent used it to shuttle between gigs in the early to mid 90′s, and his current band, WeirdBeast, has dedicated a song to its legacy.

Even more special, and the reason that this current media storm hits close to home, is because the Melvan is literally parked near my home.  As in, if I threw a rock really hard I would come close to hitting it from my driveway.  Not that I would, of course.  It’s local lore, a well-hidden gem amongst the lush evergreens surrounding our peaceful logging community.  Rolling Stone magazine, SPIN, Forbes and countless others have been plastering stories of this auction all over the country, bringing a lot of attention to this significant event.  Unfortunately, almost all of which have been publishing incorrect information and unauthorized bits of info that they are slow, or unresponsive to retract.  How do I know this to be fact?  Ben is standing next to me right now.  That’s how I know.  So, being a responsible journalist, I went straight to the horse’s mouth to set the record straight.  Take a listen to Ben Berg, in his own words, correct a much publicized error regarding who is actually selling the van:

Frustrations about journalistic integrity aside, Ben remains optimistic about the auction itself which seems to be doing phenomenally well.  Aside from countless interviews and magazine requests, he carries on his day-to-day life like anyone else.

I have known Ben for a while and the sale of this cherished beauty comes with an emotional toll.  However,  the flow of positivity he spreads to the community every passing day is contagious and reciprocal, garnering him newfound optimism into this newly created void.  Hopefully the new Melvan owner embodies this same outlook on life as he does.  Best of luck Ben, we are happy to set the record straight and share in your whirlwind adventure! If you got the cash, his eBay auction runs until Sunday!

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PS – Ben works for us!  We are a Seattle company (2 hours from Montesano) and employ 6 people from his home county of Grays Harbor, Washington including Montesano natives myself and Wes, our Director of Engineering.  Ben has worked part time for Hark.com for some time now and has completed licensed work on such Pacific Northwest-filmed properties such as Twin Peaks & First Blood that are popular features on our site.  Is the Washington pride theme coming through loud and clear?  Good, that’s the point.