Archives for September 2016

Certain Songs #654: Hüsker Dü – “Sorry Somehow”

September 19, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Candy Apple Grey
Year: 1986

(Hart)

Sell out!!

Following The Replacements but beating R.E.M. in the “selling out to a major label” sweepstakes, Hüsker Dü released Candy Apple Grey on Warner Bros just six months after Flip Your Wig, their fourth album in less than two years.

Of course, the whole major vs. indie thing is a load of horseshit: loads and loads of uncompromising music had been made for the majors long before the indies became a viable career alternative. It all depended on the artist. Still does, as far as I can tell.

As so as far as I could tell then — or now, for that matter — Candy Apple Grey was the record Hüsker Dü would have made for SST had they stayed with SST, reflecting their continued growth as both songwriters and record-makers.

Certain Songs #653: Hüsker Dü – “Keep Hanging On”

September 18, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Flip Your Wig
Year: 1985

(Hart)

My favorite Hüsker Dü song.

It was pretty close to 15 years ago today, and I’m driving up to Fresno from Los Angeles, where I’d been sleeping on Tim’s couch and housesitting at Andrea & Luke’s while working a temporary job at Paramount doing some stuff for the Star Trek website and trying to secure a more permanent job at IndyMac Bank.

I hadn’t actually had a permanent job in six months — the (hopefully) longest period of unemployment I’ll ever go through — and I hadn’t seen Rox in a couple of weeks, to boot, as she was holding down the fort in Oakland, from where we would have to move (and didn’t want to move) if I actually got the IndyMac job.

Oh, and 9/11 had happened the week before.

Certain Songs #652: Hüsker Dü – “Divide and Conquer”

September 17, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Flip Your Wig
Year: 1985

(Mould)

Of course Flip Your Wig wasn’t all pure pop songs. Instead, they were the exception on an album that used their cleaner sound to support several anthems, like Bob Mould’s barn-burning “Divide And Conquer.”

In fact, it was the combo of heartfelt love songs and heartfelt anthems that has always caused me to rank Flip Your Wig slightly higher than New Day Rising, but only slightly, because both records were insanely strong.

Certain Songs #651: Hüsker Dü – “Green Eyes”

September 16, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Flip Your Wig
Year: 1985

(Hart)

Have a 1985, Hüsker Dü.

Their third record in just over a year, Flip Your Wig pretty much sealed the deal for the greatness of Hüsker Dü, especially since the shitty production that had (somewhat) marred the previous two albums was gone.

Flip Your Wig was produced by Bob Mould and Grant Hart, and it was instantly apparent: the guitars were powerful and prominent, the vocals even more so, and the cleaner sound made the hooks stand out even more.

Certain Songs #650: Hüsker Dü – “Makes No Sense At All”

September 15, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Flip Your Wig
Year: 1985

(Mould)

The first single from Flip Your Wig flipped the script.

Until “Makes No Sense At All,” Grant Hart was tagged as the “pop” guy who wrote the big, hooky songs like “Pink Turns to Blue” or “Books About UFOs” while Bob Mould wrote the statement songs like “Whatever” or “Celebrated Summer.”

But “Makes No Sense At All,” which came out a ridiculous six months after New Day Rising, stands as their pure pop pinnacle. Without sacrificing even an iota of their stratospheric roar.

Certain Songs #649: Hüsker Dü – “Love Is All Around”

September 14, 2016 by Jim Connelly

B-side, 1985

Arriving our lives a scant six months after New Day Rising, the titanic “Makes No Sense At All” was yet another electric jolt from the Hüskers, but we’ll get to that tomorrow.

Today, I want to talk about the b-side of that single, their cover of Sonny Curtis’ “Love Is All Around,” which, of course was the theme song to the Mary Tyler Moore Show, which was set in Minneapolis.

Certain Songs #648: Hüsker Dü – “Books About UFOs”

September 13, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: New Day Rising
Year: 1985

(Hart)

With its jaunty rhythm, barrelhouse piano and upbeat melody, Grant Hart’s “Books About UFOs” pretty much symbolized the poppier direction in which Hüsker Dü was taking their punk rock buzzsaw.

An unabashed love song, “Books About UFOs” was undoubtedly a gateway jam for of people who would have otherwise been put off by Hüsker Dü simply by reputation as a hardcore punk band. I can imagine more than one person heard “Books About UFOs” on their friendly local college radio station and when finding out it was Hüsker Dü, being surprised. And wanting to hear more.

Certain Songs #647: Hüsker Dü – “Celebrated Summer”

September 12, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: New Day Rising
Year: 1985

(Mould)

I’ve only ever been to Minneapolis-St. Paul one time. It was to see The Replacements, of course, much of the fun of the trip was hanging out with the people who lived there. So Larry & Kevin gave us a tour before the show and Ira and Myra had lunch with us the day after the show.

Both days were lovely, gorgeous summer days. And during lunch that second day, Ira was telling a story about one of the winters, and in the middle of it he casually mentioned that it was too cold to snow before continuing with the story.

Too cold to snow.

Certain Songs #646: Hüsker Dü – “I Apologize”

September 11, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: New Day Rising
Year: 1985

(Mould)

One of the most extraordinary things about Hüsker Dü was how ordinary they seemed.

While that kind of ordinariness is now the stock in trade of indie rock, in the mid-1980s, you still looked kinda how you sounded. Even The Replacements had their waxed up hair and their painted shoes.

So that’s what was so weird about Hüsker Dü. Three schlubs, two of them verging on overweight, and the third with a completely cheesy — and ironically, kinda gay-seeming — handlebar mustache. So, totally not hardcore. Jesus, Bob Mould even played a Gibson Flying V!

Certain Songs #645: Hüsker Dü – “New Day Rising”

September 10, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: New Day Rising
Year: 1985

(Mould, Hart, Norton)

New day rising

In December, 1984, while we were all still digesting Zen Arcade, SST Records sent us an white-sleeved advance 7″ promotional single of a couple of songs from Hüsker Dü’s next album.

New day rising

On one side was the ostensible single, “Celebrated Summer,” and on the other side was the title track, “New Day Rising.”

New day rising

That right there, kids, is how you announce that an album as momentous as Zen Arcade isn’t a fluke, but rather a harbinger.