The Hüsker Dü Album-by-Album thread

I had mixed feelings. I liked Nirvana, because they had some of the pop sensibility that was present in bands like Hüsker Dü and the Replacements, but a lot of the others left me very cold. I really didn't like Soundgarden until they released Superunknown - prior to that I thought they were doing very bad (and humorless) Led Zeppelin imitations. In fact, it seemed to me that a lot of the Sub Pop bands were borrowing rather too heavily from the excesses of 70s rawwwwwk.

Outside of the Sub Pop scene I was very into Dinosaur Jr., again because J. Mascis seems to have a strong grasp of melody (buried under all that feedback!).

Perhaps more importantly, I felt I was in at the "ground floor" of the late 80s/early 90s scene, whereas I was slightly late for the early 80s stuff. So that's perhaps why I may have taken to it a bit better.

 

I was very much into the American Underground scene in 1984 w/HD, etc....I wish I still had the interview we did with them on WICN...I just kept the station ID which is pretty cool....but I don't recommend interviewing bands after the show when they are wired like we did.


Inbetween early 80's guitar bands and Nirvana I heard a lot of synth/dance/Europop/etc like Depeche Mode or post-punk/new wave bands turned "alternative or adult alternative" POP like Simple Minds, etc. so when 'NEVERMIND' came out it was a great return to guitars and a fresh sound that I really liked. I never really got into other grunge bands but I did love the "nevermind' lp. After that I felt for the first time that hearing Husker Du's poppier tracks on Commercial Alternative Radio might be within reach...although I don't think I ever have heard them outside of college/public radio.

I also found 1990 to be the end of my 20-something concert going single young rock fan years and the beginning of parenthood and a broadening of musical interests into classical, female singer/songwirter and revisiting classic rock--especially the lesser known bands and tracks as well as select new indie/garage/hard rock bands.

 

I liked it a lot, at least during the pre-Nevermind days when Sub-Pop had a lock on the sound and before all the bar bands and Bad Company wannabes cut down on the solos, bought a Bigmuff pedal, and jumped on the bandwagon. I must have bought about 3/4 of Sub-Pop's output during the '89-91 period, when the Hardcore/underground bands quit or were in holding patterns and before noisepop/shoegaze became my new favourite music.

As for Zen Arcade: this was my first HD album as well; I'd heard the name since my Trouser Press-reading days (Metal Circus got a great review in one of the final issues) but hadn't heard much about their sound until Zen came out and the praise started getting heaped on them. I particularly remember being intrigued by an interview wherein Mould said, "I think we're very much a band in the pop tradition like the Byrds - but we're doing our own interpretation of it". That's it, I was sold. Picked up the album for about $7 (cheap!) at a record store in Kalispell, MT while on a family ski trip, put it on the turntable at home a week later, and within five minutes had a new favourite band.

FWIW, I bought two records that day - Zen and the EP Whiplash by...Metallica! Even in my indie days I still had some jones for the metal (gave up on the posey widdyly commercial stuff, and wasn't too into a lot of the thrash/proto-death stuff, which often seemed to be made by virginal boys covering for their inadequecies) and my varied tastes in guitar rock made me very open to grunge when it burst forth.

 

I've been busy but I want to keep this thread going. This will be a quick and dirty review without a lot of thought given. I reserve the right to add more later if anything remotely insightful occurs to me. So here goes:

New Day Rising (1985)

Side one
1. "New Day Rising" (B. Mould, Hüsker Dü) – 2:31
2. "The Girl Who Lives On Heaven Hill" (G. Hart) – 3:03
3. "I Apologize" (B. Mould) – 3:40
4. "Folk Lore" (B. Mould) – 1:34
5. "If I Told You" (G. Hart, B. Mould) – 2:05
6. "Celebrated Summer" (B. Mould) – 3:59
7. "Perfect Example" (B. Mould) – 3:16

Side two
1. "Terms of Psychic Warfare" (G. Hart) – 2:17
2. "59 Times the Pain" (B. Mould) – 3:18
3. "Powerline" (B. Mould) – 2:22
4. "Books About UFOs" (G. Hart) – 2:40
5. "I Don't Know What You're Talking About" (B. Mould) – 2:20
6. "How To Skin A Cat" (B. Mould, Hüsker Dü) – 1:52
7. "Whatcha Drinkin'" (B. Mould) – 1:30
8. "Plans I Make" (B. Mould, Hüsker Dü) – 4:16


Recorded in July of 1984, this is the album where for me Bob really comes into his own as a songwriter. He dominates the album in terms of amount of songs, and his material takes a huge step forward.

Earlier I said that "Pink Turns to Blue" was Hüsker Dü's finest moment. Well, "Celebrated Summer" is certainly their second-best song. Bob's opening guitar alternating with Greg's bass grabs you by the throat, and the acoustic interludes are a dramatic and unexpected turn. Then there's the lyrics, deeper and more contemplative than anything he'd done so far. "I Apologize" is almost as good. And I love the unexpected humor of "How to Skin a Cat." "Folk Lore" and "I Don't Know What You're Talking About" are also favorites. This might be my favorite set of Mould songs ever.

Hart has a low profile here, but "Books about UFOs" is a blast. I can never get enough of the bouncy pop/abrasive guitar combination Hart and Mould created. "Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill" is also a highlight of the album.

As usual, the ever prolific Dü had too much material. Two outtakes exist from these sessions, the unreleased "Stop to Listen" and "Erase Today" which turned up on the SST compilation "The Blasting Concept Volume II."

 

This is the peak of Husker Du for me. Zen Arcade & New Day Rising are what made me a big fan....the rest are the supporting cast.

In concert the mix of slower pop songs and the faster songs that just explode and turn the audience into a gyrating gel of human flesh make those shows some of my best concert memories ever...more so around this time in clubs than later at the Filmore and bigger venues.


These come to mind as my favs:
2. "The Girl Who Lives On Heaven Hill" (G. Hart) – 3:03
6. "Celebrated Summer" (B. Mould) – 3:59

Side two
1. "Terms of Psychic Warfare" (G. Hart) – 2:17
4. "Books About UFOs" (G. Hart) – 2:40
5. "I Don't Know What You're Talking About" (B. Mould) – 2:20

I never liked this one:
6. "How To Skin A Cat" (B. Mould, Hüsker Dü) – 1:52

 

i have mixed feelings about New Day Rising.

the good: it contains "Celebrated Summer," which is not only one of my favorite Husker Du / Bob Mould tunes, but one of my top 5 songs period. i also love "I Apologize," "New Day Rising," and "Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill" (in that order). i also dig the crazy, blown-out guitar sound. i know some people despise the way this record was produced (even the band didn't like the way it turned out), but i think it works.

the bad: the rest of the songs are average to downright dull. to me, New Day Rising is frustrating because it contains some of the band's most brilliant songs alongside some of their most dispensable songs. as such, even though i love a handful of the individual songs, i'd rank it as one of my least favorite Husker albums as a whole.

"Celebrated Summer," though... what a song. i've listened to it hundreds and hundreds of times, and i have yet to get tired of it. the chord progression in the verse is unspeakably beautiful and profound, and the ascending part of the guitar solo routinely gives me chills (the chanted vocals during the guitar solo are also a nice touch and easy to miss). i also think the introspective, nostalgic lyrics are a step forward for Bob.

Grant's vocals in "Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill" are pretty wild... i listen to a lot of hardcore punk and metal, so i'm used to harsh, screaming vocals, but i have to say that Grant's vocals towards the end of this song are almost disturbing. they really do sound totally deranged, unhinged. i love it!

 

don't ya hate it when at 1:30 in the morning you find out what you shoulda been listening to all night long? definitely like side three better than the first two but that may be the bushmills. these songs all seem unfamiliar, though, unlike the songs on the next album which decorated my college days.

 

I'm playing catchup with this excellent thread. When I last tuned in we were on Metal Circus. For me, the "Eight Miles High" single was the first I heard from HD. Back in the day the best record store in Toronto - i.e., with the best stock and the best staff - was a 'Records on Wheels' outlet on Yonge Street just south of Bloor. The staff were amazing people with no attitude at all. One day while in university I was browsing (I browsed a lot in university). This THING came over the store's sound system. It took me about 30 seconds to realize that this was it - a complete destruction and recreation (I refuse to say deconstruction) of a brilliant record. This 'cover' gave Eight Miles High an entirely new annex of meaning consistent with its original content: HD's Eight Miles High conveys the realities of the dark side of the drug thing and its consequences - revelation of inner horror, collapse of form, shattered perception, release of rage - like no other record I know.
I remember that when this played the store was otherwise completely silent (not just drowned out). When it finished one of the staff looked at the guy who put it on. He said, "That's amazing!"
No one else said anything for a while.
Which brings me to New Day Rising, finally. After hearing Eight Miles High I picked up Metal Circus, missed Zen Arcade (believe it or not), and then heard NDR. Metal Circus had some great things but NDR sealed it for me. I agree that NDR is inconsistent, but the good stuff is utterly priceless because of the strength of the writing. As with all of the SST records the sound is not good enough - they improve over time from crap to mediocre on Flip Your Wig - but I can't think of a band that has had a more powerful impact on me since.

 

so, last night i'd have to say that side four of zen arcade blew my mind. that last song reminded me of built to spill a lot and is something i've got to play for my classic rock friends. it's so different than everything else i've heard by HD.

 

New Day Rising (1985)

after the almost fillerless "zen arcade", "new day rising" had to be a downstep... but nevertheless there are some classics on this... the last four tracks imho are filler, but excellent filler (still better than 99% of all other hardcore songs, issued in this year)...


Side one
1. "New Day Rising" (B. Mould, Hüsker Dü) – okay starter, semi-instrumental
2. "The Girl Who Lives On Heaven Hill" (G. Hart) – classic no. 1, very good hart-hymn
3. "I Apologize" (B. Mould) – very good song, although not a classic
4. "Folk Lore" (B. Mould) – also good song
5. "If I Told You" (G. Hart, B. Mould) – classic no. 2
6. "Celebrated Summer" (B. Mould) – classic no. 3, maybe the best song on this album, surely in the hüsker top 10
7. "Perfect Example" (B. Mould) – good song, in fact side one is almost filler free..

Side two
1. "Terms of Psychic Warfare" (G. Hart) – good song
2. "59 Times the Pain" (B. Mould) – very good song
3. "Powerline" (B. Mould) – classic no. 4
4. "Books About UFOs" (G. Hart) – classic no. 5
5. "I Don't Know What You're Talking About" (B. Mould) –filler, though the best of the filler tracks
6. "How To Skin A Cat" (B. Mould, Hüsker Dü) – filler
7. "Whatcha Drinkin'" (B. Mould) – filler
8. "Plans I Make" (B. Mould, Hüsker Dü) – filler

overall: a good album, with a not so good ending
4 / 5

 

New Day Rising is my favourite of their SST albums. I know there might be slight filler towards the end but its played so furiously it doesn't even matter.

I like the sound of this album immensely, the drums sound great and Mould guitar sound is like shattered glass. Then there's the songs:

Celebrated Summer and Girl Who Lives In Hell are right up there in the Huskers pantheon of classics. One of the most exciting records ever made.

This was their last real dalliance with the hardcore sound as they transitioned to a punk-poppier style on Flip Your Wig.

 

Great thread and read!

 

got NDR the week it came out, While I listen to the 2 WB albums most often I'd have to say this is their best release, yes the production is 's#itty' but I couldn't imagine it sounding any other way, I look at it that they were poor (financially) artists and they got their vision out with the materials they had available to them.

Side one is perfect, side 2 isn't as good but Powerline is very underrated and it's all better to me than 13 minutes of Reoccurring Dreams.

My favorite cover photo of theirs too, one of my alltime favorites.

 

I'm ok with them dialing down the intensity at the end of the record. This type of thing can make music seem less pretentious. A great record, for me not as good as the prior two, but still a classic, as were the next three.

And I love the opener.

 

great thread

for NDR, my favorite is 59 times the pain, but the title track is pretty awesome too

 

My first exposure to any of the music from New Day Rising did not involve listening to the album in question. I was at a bar one night to see a friend of mine who was putting on a solo acoustic show. There was one song he played that impressed me so much that I decided that whoever had first performed this song was my new favourite band.

Talking to him afterwards, I found out the title of the song was "Books About UFO's".

 

Flip Your Wig (1985)
1. "Flip Your Wig" (Mould) – 2:33
2. "Every Everything" (Hart) – 1:56
3. "Makes No Sense At All" (Mould) – 2:43
4. "Hate Paper Doll" (Mould) – 1:52
5. "Green Eyes" (Hart) – 2:58
6. "Divide And Conquer" (Mould) – 3:42
7. "Games" (Mould) – 4:06
8. "Find Me" (Mould) – 4:05
9. "The Baby Song" (Hart) – 0:46
10. "Flexible Flyer" (Hart) – 3:01
11. "Private Plane" (Mould) – 3:17
12. "Keep Hanging On" (Hart) – 3:15
13. "The Wit And The Wisdom" (Mould) – 3:41
14. "Don't Know Yet" (Mould) – 2:14

I don't know if I've mentioned it yet, but I was a latecomer to Hüsker Dü, and this was actually the first album I heard. It's still my favorite... I imagine partly for sentimental reasons, but I think a credible argument can be made that it's their best work overall.

I've made it clear in earlier posts that I love a good pop song. Nick Lowe is a genius, and the Young Fresh Fellows may be my alltime favorite band. This album, recorded over March to June 1985, is the poppiest thing Hüsker Dü ever did, and the strongest exponent of their catchy pop melody/heavy noise guitar formula. Bob's stuff in particular is noticeably more in a pop vein than anything he would do again till Sugar. "Flip Your Wig" is flat out a great pop song with rare (for Bob) cheerful lyrics. "Makes No Sense at All" was a massive hit single in some alternate dimension. "Divide and Conquer" is a trademark political rant that would lyrically fit right in on "Everything Falls Apart" but musically is just damn catchy.

I don't know much about the guys' personal lives, but if one takes the lyrics literally then it seems Grant must have been newly in love around the time he wrote his songs. "Every Everything" and especially "Green Eyes" are unabashed love songs. "Green Eyes" in particular has lyrics that border on sappy. But the way Grant sings, combined with the downbeat melody and Bob's gigantic, moody guitar give the song almost a sense of foreboding under the joy. Or at least that's the way I like to interpret it. If nothing else, Grant's pie-eyed romantic optimism here sets the stage nicely for the bitter spite of the next album (on which he writes two of the best breakup songs ever). I love Bob's chiming guitar at the beginning of this track. "Flexible Flyer" is another career highlight for Grant, with moving lyrics that use a toy wagon to wax philosophical about the nature of aging ("If your heart is a flame burning brightly/You'll have light and you'll never be cold/And soon you will know that you just grow/You're not growing old"... I love that sentiment). "Keep Hanging On" is another shameless love song that musically feels deeper than its sentimental lyrics. Overall Grant doesn't have a weak track on the record, unless one counts "The Baby Song," which I don't (other than to wonder how Grant ever convinced Bob to let it get on the album).

The outtake this time around turned up as a b-side to "Makes No Sense at All." It's the cover of Sonny Curtis' "Love is All Around." Unlike "Eight Miles High", this is just an ironic goofy punk cover, and the idea of a Minneapolis punk band doing this song is so obvious I can't believe the Replacements didn't think of it first (it would have fit their style better, for sure).

Notably, this is also their first Spotless album, and it sounds slightly better than previous efforts, perhaps for that reason.

 

i like the title track because it's one of the few times where Bob and Grant trade off on lead vocals in the same song.

"Makes No Sense At All" - a classic, of course. it should be noted that the mastering of this song on the Eight Miles High/Makes No Sense At All CD is different compared to the Flip Your Wig CD. the latter sounds more compressed and radio-ready - a bit drier, too. i'm not sure if the 7" sounds different compared to the LP in a similar fashion - does anyone know?

"Green Eyes" is my favorite Grant Hart song. it might be the best song on the album. but then again, "Games" is also a strong contender... another Bob Mould composition that goes deep. i particularly like the ringing open strings, and the way Bob's voice disintegrates at the end.

i don't listen to the second half of this album too much. i don't actually dislike any of the songs - they're all pretty good. but they're not quite as engaging as the ones on side 1, in my opinion. i really like the instrumental closers... certainly much more than "Reoccurring Dreams."

this is kind of a weird-sounding album... the production never quite did it for me, especially the guitar sound. but i've read interviews where Bob calls the production a great achievement.

 

Flip Your Wig (1985)

for me it is a little bit weaker then NDR, it always seemed too much filled with outtakes, maybe they kept the best songs for their warners debut...


1. "Flip Your Wig" (Mould) – okay song
2. "Every Everything" (Hart) – filler
3. "Makes No Sense At All" (Mould) – classic no. 1: good single
4. "Hate Paper Doll" (Mould) – okay song
5. "Green Eyes" (Hart) – classic no. 2, one of the best songs from grant hart
6. "Divide And Conquer" (Mould) – classic no. 3, i got especially connections with this because of my computer science studium, there is an algorithm called "divide and conquer" and i always associate it with this song
7. "Games" (Mould) – filler
8. "Find Me" (Mould) – classic no. 4, my favourite song of the album, with a very psychedelic soundscape, shows also that mould was a master in building tension in a song
9. "The Baby Song" (Hart) – extremely filler
10. "Flexible Flyer" (Hart) – okay song
11. "Private Plane" (Mould) – filler
12. "Keep Hanging On" (Hart) – filler
13. "The Wit And The Wisdom" (Mould) – filler
14. "Don't Know Yet" (Mould) – filler

overall: as with NDR especially the last songs are filler (although most of them listenable)... there are four classics, most of the rest i can live without:
3.5/5

 

I'll be damned, I never noticed that. I don't have the CD-single anymore, but I still have the 7-Inch Wonders of the World comp. I'll have to pull that out and compare.

 

I like it better than the albums Spot engineered, but no Hüsker Dü album deserves to be called a "great achievement" sonically. I like that you can hear the bass slightly more than on earlier albums.

 

...and on the following albums too.

 

Games? Filler?..........Seriously???? Are you sure?

I cannot believe anyone could call this track filler!!!! its one of Bob Mould's ....nay anyone's greatest ever songs. Everytime i hear it with that chiming guitar through the chorus it lifts me right up. I think this one has Bob's best ever guitar playing, the huge roar of sound of the guitar riff coming in after grant snare hit at the start. What a vocal melody, what brilliantly insightful lyrics, it powers along, its a Husker classic.

That run on side one from the fabulous title track with Bob and Grant swopping verses, the fizzing powerpop of Every Everything, the classic pop single makes No Sense At All, Grants masterpiece Green Eyes, the raging Divide And Conquer (bobs guitar riff takes your head off here) through to the peak of Games. Phew...

 

Crikey forgot Hate Paper Doll's also on side one!!! Another belter.

Side Two is merely excellent after that. Didn't like Find Me that much for a long time but i like it a lot now. Flexible Flyer is a Grant Hart classic. Its a pity he cant get a consistent solo career together, he really misses Bob's drive and musicianship to realise his songs. Private Plane is great though i know Bob Mould hates that song now and thinks its a throwaway embarrasment. Ok the lyrics might be clumsy metaphors but its a great powerpop tune. Guitar part is again Mould genius. Keep Hanging On is great song thats better live than the take captured here. The 2 instrumentals at the end sound like they ran out of songs but again Bob's great guitar playing lifts them out of filler category.

Side 1 is the best run they ever had, then again sides 1 and 3 of warehouse....