(Grunge-rock pioneers trek from Seattle to legendary Memphis, Tenn., studio to finish seventh album.)

To some people, it might seem unnatural -- heretical, even -- to take Mudhoney out of Seattle to make a record. After all, it was Mudhoney, even before Nirvana and Pearl Jam, who put the Emerald City on the map as the home of grunge.

But producer Jim Dickinson (Rolling Stones, Replacements, Bob Dylan, Big Star) is no traditionalist.

So, after laying down initial tracks at Seattle's Studio Litho (owned by Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard), Dickinson insisted that Mudhoney trek to Memphis, Tenn. -- the stomping ground of early rock 'n' roll pioneers such as the late Elvis Presley and the very much alive and kickin' Jerry Lee Lewis -- to complete the recording and mixing of Tomorrow Hits Today, the hard-rocking band's seventh album.

"A big part of what I record is cultural ambiance, the history of this area, "Dickinson said recently from Ardent Studios, where he was beginning to mix the album. "Definitely something does happen in Memphis, recording-wise. I've never seen it miss on any of my people who I've brought there. You pick a little something up. And that's what I was trying to do -- lift the record up a couple of notches."

Mudhoney singer Mark Arm said that the band wrote two-dozen songs for the album over the course of the past year. The group recorded 16 of those originals -- plus covers of Roxy Music's "Editions of You" and Cheater Sticks' "Ghost" -- with the intent of keeping 12 cuts for the final album. A release is planned for late August or September.

"I think we'll have an incredibly strong record," Arm said by phone from Ardent. "All of our albums have had good songs, but some of them have pretty weak spots. When we did Piece of Cake [1992], we were wanting to put something out as quickly as possible. It was about three-quarters done when it was released, and it kind of shows that."

At Dickinson's suggestion, guitarist Steve Turner took advantage of Memphis' unique gifts and dropped by the studio of Sam Phillips, the Sun Records owner who recorded Presley, as well as rocker Carl Perkins, who died last year, and the late bluesman Howlin' Wolf. There, Jerry Lee Lewis' guitar player, Roland Janes, added his touch to several Mudhoney tracks.

"Roland did a few guitar leads," said Turner, still sounding a bit amazed at the chance to work with a rock 'n' roll legend, however briefly. "It was really fast. We weren't there for more than 45 minutes, but Roland seems like a really nice guy. Jim thought it was really good and that Roland approved of it."

Dickinson said he had long been familiar with Mudhoney's early work such as Superfuzz Bigmuff on Sub Pop. For Tomorrow Hits Today, he tried to capture the ferocity that he thinks Mudhoney put across best on their singles and soundtrack songs.

"To me, those have had a little more fire than some of their albums," Dickinson said. "I got that. I got at least three or four radically different types of songs. It's not as monochromatic as their last record, that's for sure."

Among the new Mudhoney originals being considered for inclusion are "Beneath The Valley Of The Underdog," "Move With The Wind," "Poisoned Water Poisons The Mind," "I Have To Laugh," "Real Low Vibe," "This Is The Life," "Drinking For Two," "Mother's Lament," "Oblivion," "Butterfly Stroke," "Talkin' Randy Tate's Specter Blues," "Try To Be Kind," "A Thousand Forms Of Mind," "Night Of The Hunted," "Brand New Face" and "I Will Fight No More Forever."

Depending on which songs are chosen, Arm said Tomorrow Hits Today "could be a real bummer record, or it could just be a bummer record -- but in a good way, not disappointing." He thinks it will offer some surprises for the Mudhoney faithful, although it still maintains ties to the band's trademark sound.

"We didn't get off into free jazz or experimental noise or anything," Arm said. "It's still the same band. But I hope when people hear it, they're blown away."