Overall bards are the casterest of the hybrids and probably not what someone asking for a melee alt is looking for. I agree with Vexenu that they melee better than people give them credit for, that their solo melee is overshadowed by pbaoe/charm if you're willing to take advantage those, and that a duo/trio with another twink melee can be surprisingly solid.
I have a 57 bard twink I have been slowly leveling. I haven't tried much toe-to-toe, but I have mixed in some attempts at fear+melee (although I have primarily leveled with charm or pbaoe). l was able to clear bloodgills while they were still blue using just fear+melee. I have drums of the beast and lute of the howler, though. Harder to justify melee without those: lute illusion gives 40% haste without costing a song and prime hand drum lets you drum dot while meleeing, so you snare/fear/3xdrum. A similarly geared monk can clear it too, I've heard.
I still mix in some fear+melee when charming, but bloodgills stuck out as one good camp that I could keep clear with just fear+melee. I have recently been trying sebilis entrance; I seem to clear faster when I use more charm relative to melee+fear. Planning to try melee+fear in skyshrine while still leveling, too.
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