By October that year, they had travelled to Los Angeles, California, to record a follow-up album, which was co-produced by Nick Raskulinecz and the band.

Meltdown received generally positive reviews from music critics, some of whom commented on the band members' musicianship.

In April 2001, Ash released their third studio album Free All Angels,[2] which was a commercial success, saving the band from the brink of bankruptcy.

[4] Frontman Tim Wheeler wanted the follow-up to be a heavy rock album with similarities to Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction (1987) and Nirvana's Nevermind (1991).

[5] In September 2002, Ash released their first compilation album Intergalactic Sonic 7″s,[6] which they promoted with a three-month supporting US tour with Saves the Day.

[8] In March 2003, Wheeler told the NME he wanted to experiment with electronic music for the band's next album after using computers to score a short film.

[1] In October, Ash went to Los Angeles, California, to record their next album, staying at Julia Roberts' former home in Beverly Hills.

[18] The guitar work throughout the album is similar to that of Black Sabbath and Metallica, and includes numerous solos played by Ash's guitarist Charlotte Hatherley.

[25][26] "Orpheus" switches between indie pop and heavy rock, and the verses include Wheeler's 1970s metal-style guitar riffs.

[28] "Evil Eye" is a slower track on which Wheeler and Hatherley trade vocals that tells the story of a female suitor.

[24] "Detonator" utilizes the talking guitar in vein of Peter Frampton during the verse sections; it is followed by the Foo Fighters-esque "On a Wave".

[31][37] "Vampire Love", which has Placebo-like lyrics and a cello part played by Oli Kraus, closes the album.

[38] The song's music video, which was filmed in the basement of a house in London, was directed by Jeff T. Thomas and premiered on MTV2 on 26 February.

[41] On 3 May, "Orpheus" was released as a single; the CD version includes "Everybody's Happy Nowadays" (with Chris Martin of Coldplay) and "Tinsel Town".

[48][49][50] The song was initially planned for released in November but was postponed because in Ash's absence, their record label made a video for it, which the band disliked.

[52] On 8 February 2005, Ash released an Extended Play (EP) called Commando, which includes "Meltdown", "Clones", "Evil Eye", and "Tinstle Town".

[57] "Orpheus", "Clones", and "Starcrossed" were also included on the band's third compilation album Teenage Wildlife: 25 Years of Ash (2020).

[70] AllMusic reviewer Jason Damas wrote Meltdown is "burst[ing] with the hooks and little musical flourishes that have made the more mature Ash records such a treat" with minimal "meandering malaise" that plagues the band's second album, Nu-Clear Sounds (1998).

[19] JR of IGN said Meltdown is "every bit as good as you'd hoped it would be", providing "on enough levels to accept the invitation into your stereo ... and your brain".

[17] Entertainment.ie reviewer Andrew Lynch wrote Meltdown is "by far the heaviest-sounding album they've made to date, sometimes a bit too heavy for Tim Wheeler's slightly weedy voice".

He added, "for all the bulldozer riffs and ferocious guitar solos on display here, the superb melodies prove that they're still just a great pop band at heart".

[22] Mikael Wood of The Boston Phoenix said the band "punch up the guitars and drums until they threaten to drown out Wheeler’s voice altogether, and the thick, chewy distortion is a return to the days of Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins".

[71] Pitchfork contributor Jason Crock noted while the album "rock[s] harder, and with more snarl" than the band's past works, they "still can't help but reveal their melodic sweet tooth".

[18] PopMatters' Adrien Begrand said the album is "slightly more consistent" than the band's previous one, highlighting Hatherley's talents as a guitarist and her vocals.

[31] Kaj Roth of Melodic wrote the band "cranked up the volume to 11 and then just rocked", and called it one of the better albums of the year as well as "one of the most fun to listen to".