Metal Circus (1983, SST 020)As their first release for SST Records (a re-release, actually), Metal Circus set the tone for future Husker Du albums. Though not as sonically abrasive as Everything Falls Apart, Bob Mould's signature over- distorted guitar, Grant Hart's ferocious drumming, and Greg Norton's pulsating bass are all present.
The brief 7-song EP features the band's most mature songwriting and the slickest production to date. Both are welcome additions to the band's sound because they do not sacrifice their punk rock notions or integrity. The songs are still marked by brevity, as Husker Du rips through the tumultous set in just under 19 minutes.
Husker Du haven't yet abondoned their punk aesthetics, but this EP marks a significant turning point in the band's shift from punk to pop.
HIGHLIGHTS: Bob Mould's paranoid, anti-nuclear war gem "Deadly Skies;" his equally paranoid, rant against anarchy, "Real World;" and his ode to alcohol's unresistable charm "First of the Last Calls." Grant Hart's perfect proto-alternative, post-punk song, "It's Not Funny More," and the demented, based-loosely-on-reality tale of rape and murder, "Diane."
LOWLIGHTS: Only one -- the EP's closer "Out on a Limb" is an unfitting end to one of Husker Du's finest works.
GRADE: A
I can't help but give Zen Arcade a biased
review -- it's simply that good. It represents the most
ambitious, epic, sprawling record in the Husker Du canon and
effectively serves as the bridge between the band's hardcore
punk roots and influential pop future.
Originally released in 1984 as a 2-record set, Zen
Arcade was hailed by critics as the best album ever
released on an independent label and it helped muscle
the fledgling SST Records onto the punk rock map.
Bob Mould, Grant Hart, and Greg Norton's songwriting
all reached fruition on the album, as the band shamelessly shows
off its new direction. Husker Du's playing has also
improved, alowing them to dabble in acoustic pop ("Never
Talking to You Again"), psychadelia ("Hare Krsna," "Dreams
Reoccuring,), straight-ahead, anthematic rock
("Turn on the News," "Somewhere," "Chartered Trips"), and
even a brief piano piece or two ("One Step at a Time,"
"Monday Will Never be the Same").
Not lost in the shuffle, though, is the band's penchant
for raw, punk rock songsmithing. Mould & Co. deliver
their best batch of power chord-happy numbers, placing
an emphatic exclamation point on the first stage of their
career.
HIGHLIGHTS: Bob Mould's long list of raucous punk
rock songs, including "Something I Learned Today,"
"Broken Home, Broken Heart," "Indecision Time," Beyond
the Threshold," "Pride," "I'll Never Forget You" and "The
Biggest Lie;" his brilliantly-poppy "Whatever;" and the
ultra-ambient "The Tooth Fairy and the Princess." Grant
Hart's "Pink Turns to Blue" is a masterpiece. Greg Norton
contributes "Never Talking to You Again" and "Somewhere"
to the Mould-dominated album.
LOWLIGHTS: Few and far between. Hart's
"Masochism World" lacks the intensity of the rest of the
album; Mould's "Chartered Trips" is plagued with a poor,
echo-heavy production; and the closing instrumental,
"Reoccuring Dreams" is over-long and repetitive.
GRADE: A
New Day Rising begins the second, more pop-oriented
phase of Husker Du's career with a bang. On past efforts,
drummer Grant Hart often let his pop influences shine
through the vast punk rock landscapes the band created
("Diane," "It's Not Funny Anymore," "Pink Turns to
Blue"), while guitarist Bob Mould was always much more
reluctant to do so.
This time around, however, the songwriting duo serve up
15 punk/pop gems, with Mould contributing more to the mix.
From Grant Hart's frantic drumming that kickstarts the
album's opener, "New Day Rising," to Mould's relentless
screaming at the end of "Plans I Make," New Day Rising
may be the most concise, satisfying listen in the Husker
Du catalog. At any rate, it's a good jumping off point for
anyone interested in the band.
HIGHLIGHTS: Some of the band's best recorded
material can be found here, from Mould's "Powerline,"
"Celebrated Summer," "New Day Rising" and "I Apologize,"
to Hart's "The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill," "Terms
of Psychic Warfare" and "Books About UFOs."
LOWLIGHTS: The lousy, almost identical Mould
compositions "Perfect Example" and "59 Times the Pain."
GRADE: B
Everything Falls Apart and More is a
collection of Husker Du's early, hardcore-inspired
material from 1978-1983. In their formative years, the band
approached songwriting with an unbridled sense of punk rock
passion, often taking cues from the burgeoning California
(Black Flag) and Washington, D.C. (Minor Threat) hardcore
scenes.
Never buried in their emulation, though, was the bands's
sense of melody or the impact of the songs. Husker Du never
relenquished control of their songs to the blind code of
punk rock ethics. Consequently, every song
from the EP Everything Falls Apart and the single
In A Free Land/What Do I Want? is hard-hitting and
represents a quintessential piece of hardcore history.
HIGHLIGHTS: Bob Mould's frenzied hardcore tunes
"Punch Drunk," "Bricklayer," "Afraid of Being Wrong,"
"Signals From Above," "Target," "Obnoxious," "In A Free
Land" and "M.I.C." Grant Hart and Greg Norton
contribute "Blah Blah Blah," "Wheels," "What Do I Want?,"
"Do You Remember?" and "From the Gut."
LOWLIGHTS: Only two -- the songs from Husker Du's
very first single, Statues/Amusement, pale in
comparison to the other material and suffer from poor
sound quality. At the same time, though, they offer a
vital slice of Husker history.
GRADE: A
The Living End is a vital recording culled from
performances that would be the band's final tour
in the fall of 1987. At its core, the album is a
celebration of punk energy and sharp songwriting, which
had become Husker Du's trademark. Their signature sound --
waves of blistering, mega-distorted guitar, bass as complementary
sonic contour, and manic drumming -- permeates the album.
The album is divided practically down the middle, with one
half devoted to Bob Mould songs, the other to Grant Hart
compositions. On the surface, a friendly rivalry pushes
each member to out-do the other's last performance. But
internally, it may have been a different story. Tension in
the band was undoubtedly high as Husker Du
was mere months away from their acrimonious split.
Regardless, the perfect pop harmonies and super-catchy
melodies that Husker Du captured on The Living End
will stand as the authoritative document of their
tragically-overlooked career.
HIGHLIGHTS: Everything. In particular, the
interaction between band members
on tracks like "Terms of Psychic Warfare," "New Day Rising,"
"Friend, You've Got to Fall," "Standing in the Rain,"
"Ice Cold Ice," "The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill,"
"In A Free Land" and "Hardly Getting Over It." A cover
of The Ramones' "Sheena is a Punk Rocker."
LOWLIGHTS: "Data Control." Two CDs would have
been nice.
GRADE: A
Husker Du's last album for SST Records, Flip
Your Wig, marks the band's full transition from punk to
pop-oriented songwriting (or proto-alternative, as I like
to call it), building
on the example set by New Day Rising. If fact,
the two records are sonically complementary -- they were both released
in 1985 after all. The major difference between the two,
though, is the bizarre, echo-laden production employed
by Flip Your Wig. Bob Mould's guitar sounds as
nasty as ever on most tracks, but Grant Hart's drums sound
too thin and trebly, while Greg Norton's bass is almost
nonexistent, and the vocals are horribly distant sounding.
Flip Your Wig's songs are strong musically, but unrevelatory,
whereas the album's lyrics sound like they were hastily
thrown together. Songs like "Every Everything," "Green
Eyes" and "Hate Paper Doll" would benefit from stronger
lyrics.
HIGHLIGHTS: Bob Mould's pop gems "Flip Your Wig,"
"Makes No Sense At All," "Private Plane" and "Games."; his
searing 1984-inspired "Divide and Conquer." Grant Hart's
hook-happy "Flexible Flyer" and "Keep Hanging On."
LOWLIGHTS: Lyrical uneveness. "The Baby Song" is
one of the sorriest excuses for a song I've ever heard.
GRADE: B
Originally released as two separate singles, Eight
Miles High (1984) and Makes No Sense At All (1985), this
mini-EP contains only four songs. The first is,
of course, "Eight Miles High," a cover of the late '60s
psychadelic Byrds classic. Easily one of the best covers
in rock history, the Husker Du version features some of
Bob Mould's most impassioned guitar playing and singing.
The droning intro guitar solo sets the pace for
Mould's husky vocals, before he abandons all subtlety and
screams the song's remaining lyrics. It's truly one of
the most powerful performances ever caught on record.
The much less spectacular b-side to "Eight Miles
High" is a live performance of "Masochism World" from
Zen Arcade.
"Makes No Sense At All" is lifted straight from the
Flip Your Wig album and, as such, exemplifies the
Husker Du pop-friendly sound of the mid-eighties. "Love
is All Around," the b-side, is an average cover of the
The Mary Tyler Moore Show theme, which sounds just
about as campy as you can imagine a post-punk band singing
a song from an upbeat '70s television show.
HIGHLIGHTS: Mould's awesome Zen Arcade era
cover of "Eight Miles High."
LOWLIGHTS: "Masochism World."
GRADE: B
As the second double LP in four years, Warehouse: Songs
and Stories doesn't sound as crisp and original as
its predecessors. It suffers the same pitfalls in
production that bogged down Flip Your Wig and
Candy Apple Grey before it; namely,
poor lyric writing and the abscence of long time producer
Spot. The ultra-slick production that permeates the album does not
detract much from the songs' strength, though I do prefer
The Living End versions to those found on
Warehouse.
The album would turn out to be Husker Du's last studio
release and tension between band members is most apparent
by the division of the album's 20 songs: 11 for Mould, and
9 for Hart. Half that number would have sufficed, as
filler dominates the album. Warehouse would, however,
point to the musical directions that both Mould and Hart
would follow post-Husker Du with Sugar and Nova Mob,
respectively.
HIGHLIGHTS: Mould's "Friend, You've Got to Fall,"
"Could You Be the One?" and "It's Not Peculiar." Hart's
"Too Much Spice" and "She Floated Away."
LOWLIGHTS: Hart's "Charity, Chastity, Prudence,
and Hope" and "You Can Live at Home."
GRADE: C
Land Speed Record, released on Husker Du's own Reflex
Records, is a blazing salute to early-eithties hardcore
punk. Recorded live, the album features the band tearing
through their two sets, with nary a pause between songs,
at breakneck speeds.
Unfortunately, the sound quality is very poor and nothing distinguishes
one song from another (fittigly, the CD has
only two tracks), but the basics are in place. Even
in their infantile years, Husker Du's knack for sharp
harmonies and powerful songwriting are quite pronounced.
HIGHLIGHTS: "All Tensed Up," "Guns At My School"
and "Bricklayer."
LOWLIGHTS: Poor sound quality.
GRADE: D
As Husker Du's first release for Warner Bros., Candy
Apple Grey is a huge disappointment. Poor, tunnel-like
production and anemic, poorly-written songs plague the
album.
After releasing two records in 1985, touring constantly,
and signing with a major label, Bob Mould, Grant Hart,
and Greg Norton were tired and wary.
Facing the newfound pressures of accusing fans and
record company expectations, Husker Du faltered a bit
before regaining their stride with Warehouse: Songs and
Stories.
HIGHLIGHTS: Mould's "Hardly Getting Over It" and
the acoustic "Too Far Down" offer some variety on this
dismally one-dimensional album. "Crystal," the album's
opener, is a quasi-punk song that misleads the listener as to
what the direction the album is headed.
LOWLIGHTS: Practically every song begins with the
same Hart drum intro. The worst, most nonsensical lyrics
the band ever committed to record.
GRADE: F
Zen Arcade (1984, SST 027)
New Day Rising (1985, SST 031)
Everything Falls Apart and More (1993, Rhino 71163)
The Living End (1994, Warner Bros. 45582)
The Rest
Flip Your Wig (1985, SST 055)
Eight Miles High/Makes No Sense at All (1986, SST 270)
Warehouse: Songs and Stories (1987, Warner Bros. 2-25544)
Land Speed Record (1981, SST 195)
Candy Apple Grey (1986, Warner Bros. 25385)
All Husker Du album reviews by Matthew Eddy
3/99.
