How brilliant are (were) they?
Proper US hardcore/alt rock, influential and without the baggage that weighs bands like Nirvana down.
New Day Rising and Candy Apple Grey are essential.
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Husker Du
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Big Black wrote: How brilliant are (were) they?
Proper US hardcore/alt rock, influential and without the baggage that weighs bands like Nirvana down.
New Day Rising and Candy Apple Grey are essential.
Agreed--an absolutely amazing band. I'd recommend purchasing Zen Arcade before either of the albums you mentioned, though--its slightly more accessible, and very few bands have ever recorded anything near as good.
Matt
Matt wrote: I'd recommend purchasing Zen Arcade before either of the albums you mentioned, though--its slightly more accessible, and very few bands have ever recorded anything near as good.
Isn't that the 'not quite a concept album but not a kick off the arse away from it' album?
I have Something I Learned Today and Monday Will Never Be The Same downloaded. Great stuff.
bloody great band, bloody loud as well.
anyway, a classic Merican TV moment....the Huskers on the Joan Rivers show doing Could You Be The One? ...not the greatest quality, the onstage colours are definitely not as vibrant as they were.....
Big Black wrote: How brilliant are (were) they?
Proper US hardcore/alt rock, influential and without the baggage that weighs bands like Nirvana down.
New Day Rising and Candy Apple Grey are essential.
Christopher you are awesome!! Husker Du have always been underrated. R.E.M and Husker Du were two of the biggest bands from the 80s American Underground. R.E.M. got huge and the Huskers imploded-sad sad sad.
Thio I like the Huskers SST albums better their major label records. I like the rough production.
to check out more of the Minneapolis sound get the Replacements "Let It Be" almost country and folksy.
If you like Husker Du get Sugar "Copper Blue"
You know I grew up with Huskers, but never got an album. Always listened to it in my friends car. Great stuff.
Which album is a really strong-all-the-way-through type album?
like ed said, try copper blue by sugar.
You can't go wrong with any Husker Du albums. They broke up during their peak.
One of the best songs ever:
depthcharge wrote: Threads Guaranteed to Elicit Comment from a Hibernating Bear, vol 1.
:\pimp3:
like you?
For me their best album with good tracks like Something I Learned Today and Never Talking to You Again
Waits for Tim to explode into this thread...
I've loved Husker Du for a looong time. I couldn't recommend just one album as they never made a bad one.
Depends on the style of music people like - it's all very much guitar based, and often very heavy, but even then, there are one or two accoustic tracks.
Added to the suggestion of Sugar's Copper Blue, I'd recommend Bob Mould's Workbook and Black Sheets of Rain as well as Grant Hart's solo work.
You just can't go wrong with Husker Du
old lead foot wrote: husker du
Fuckin seconded
Grant Harts Nova Mob/solo stuff,
also worth checking out ,
as is Bob Moulds
Warehouse,songs and stories,the first Huskers album i heard
Where is Tim...
BonoShed wrote:
If you like Husker Du get Sugar "Copper Blue"
I have one song, The Act Will Act. Great stuff.
Chris Nash wrote: Waits for Tim to explode into this thread...
I've loved Husker Du for a looong time. I couldn't recommend just one album as they never made a bad one.
Depends on the style of music people like - it's all very much guitar based, and often very heavy, but even then, there are one or two accoustic tracks.
Added to the suggestion of Sugar's Copper Blue, I'd recommend Bob Mould's Workbook and Black Sheets of Rain as well as Grant Hart's solo work.
You just can't go wrong with Husker Du
Waits for Tim to get back from holiday and fix his blown power supply on PC! Husker Du were the best, simple as that. More melodies than the Beatles, more power than Nirvana. None of the solo work has ever quite reached the combined heights for me, but they were an awesome band mid 80s.
, ta fer the cds btwNo probs, sorry it took me so long!
Thing with the Huskers is that they were so loud and powerful live, but it doesn't really come across on the soundboard recordings. I've got loads of live stuff, but it's often quite boring as the setlists didn't change much and the real incendiary power of the live show isn't captured on the tape, whether it be audience or mixer. The videos that you can find on places like Dime are good though, the earlier ones are better than the 87 stuff, by which time there was an element of going through the motions.
I always preferred Grant's input to Bob's, and preferred Grant's solo stuff until he really lost the plot and started doing gigs consisting of nothing but sea shanties. Such a pity that there is no chance whatsoever of a reformation that lasts longer than two songs, Grant won't bow to Bob's materialist approach to it, and there is so much poison under the bridge now it wouldn't happen.
Got exceedingly drunk to Husker Du waiting for Norder at Glastonbury '87, woke up to Julian Cope hours later, anyone know who I missed?
oldmonkey wrote: Thing with the Huskers is that they were so loud and powerful live, but it doesn't really come across on the soundboard recordings. I've got loads of live stuff, but it's often quite boring as the setlists didn't change much and the real incendiary power of the live show isn't captured on the tape, whether it be audience or mixer.
the 87 stuff, by which time there was an element of going through the motions. and there is so much poison under the bridge now it wouldn't happen.
'87. 20 Years. Seems a veritable million yrs. ago.
Love it and find in all the Loudness and all the Brash there was- is the Freedom. Eh. Paid having an Older brother. Cruised w/ PCL, Still juxtaposed to things like Radiohead. Didn't Aphex Twin, Can, Nau. site their influence.
oldmonkey wrote: Grant won't bow to Bob's materialist approach to it, and there is so much poison under the bridge now it wouldn't happen.
Who said signing to a major label is good for you?
Quite liked Sugar (saw them live supporting Sonic Youth), but the only Husker Du I've ever heard is 'Don't wanna know' and a cover of Ticket to Ride that was on a free 7" on the NME once. Neither really blew me away, but they've been on my list of 'things to listen to if I find them dirt cheap' for at least a decade.
I think of Mr Mould as 'the other fat Bob'.
He's anything but fat Bob these days!
Since the NME outed him and he decided to go for the full public gay style thingy, he's been in the gym ten days a week by the look of it. Ridiculous soul patch again though!
I like Bob, not sure I would like to have been in a band/co-songwriter with him, but having met the guy and had good opportunity to talk with him, I liked what he had to say.
a buddy,Bruce, who is ten years older and an ex-Tower employee told me a story where one of our co-workers was in awe...why??
the kid said "oh my god, you met Husker Du?"
Bob Mould will host "Blowoff" at the 9:30 Club in DC every so often, once a month or so. I thought about going until Bruce told me "it is a lot of bears (big hairy gay guys)
I figured then I MIGHT not cause well-not my type...
Nice to see other fans on here who appreciate them. Must start digging further into the back catalogue.
The early stuff is a bit strange, they started off writing punkish songs that weren't too fast, then in 1981 hardcore speedcore ultracore kicked in, and by 85 they were writing guitar pop with a fuzzbox. A hell of a journey very quickly.
Recommended stuff:
Land Speed Record Everything Falls Apart (and more) Metal Circus Zen Arcade New Day Rising Flip Your Wig Candy Apple Grey Warehouse Songs And Stories The Living End.
All of it
bob mould may be sour but he's one the nicest guys to talk to after a show. His sense of humor is fantastic.
Are the solo careers as good?
In a word, no.
Bob's always been very angry and angsty in his solo work, with only occasional lighter moments (check out "Trade" on the Modulate album, it's a song he wrote in 1987 when the Huskers were still together but had never known how to record and do it justice). His voice can grate as well on complete albums, that was the beauty of Husker Du in that every other song had a different singer, live and on record. The Sugar stuff is pretty much excellent though, some really powerful songs (and the loudest band I've ever heard!).
Grant's solo career is even more patchy. The first album was excellent, then he formed Nova Mob, completely lost the plot with "Admiral of the Sea" and then did a great eponymous Nova Mob album. He also released a strange live acoustic album "Ecce Homo" (the title a direct dig at Bob's displeasure at being outed by the NME), and his most recent album Good News For Modern Man didn't live up to the title.
I think they supported the Pixies on tour some time ago (late 80's/early 90's) - they were pretty good, though I never got round to buying their albums.
Got a limited Sugar 7" single (in a brown cardboard sleeve) when it was released... Must play it at some point!
Nick King wrote: I think they supported the Pixies on tour some time ago (late 80's/early 90's) - they were pretty good, though I never got round to buying their albums.
Got a limited Sugar 7" single (in a brown cardboard sleeve) when it was released... Must play it at some point!
Nah, they split in late 87, before the Pixies started doing anything. They certainly wouldn't have been supporting the likes of Pixies at that stage, even if the two bands had co-existed. The Pixies advert for a bass player wanted someone into "Husker Du and Peter, Paul and Mary" - Kim got the deal!
oldmonkey wrote:
Nick King wrote: I think they supported the Pixies on tour some time ago (late 80's/early 90's) - they were pretty good, though I never got round to buying their albums.
Got a limited Sugar 7" single (in a brown cardboard sleeve) when it was released... Must play it at some point!
Nah, they split in late 87, before the Pixies started doing anything. They certainly wouldn't have been supporting the likes of Pixies at that stage, even if the two bands had co-existed. The Pixies advert for a bass player wanted someone into "Husker Du and Peter, Paul and Mary" - Kim got the deal!
maybe he was speaking of sugar touring with pixies.
Yes, maybe. Possibly not quite an overlap the other way this time though, Sugar was mid-92 onwards, which was when Pixies imploded. Would have been quite a bill, Sugar and Pixies on the same night!
