It sounds like if your beloved, patch-covered, never-washed jean jacket came to life, cram-listened to Bruce Springsteen and Thin Lizzy, and started a band with other punk-ass jean jackets. It's a riotous punch of powerpop bombast, finishing with a windows-down outro that careens down the highway into the sunset. Producer Alex Bonenfant (METZ, July Talk) does a slick job of nudging the song into E-Street Band-grade anthemics, making it an indulgent arena-rock escape.
Everyone give a listen to The War on Drugs' new album A Deeper Understanding which came out today! My most anticipated album of the year does not disappoint, it somehow is better than Lost in the Dream in my opinion.
METZ's third album arrives in three weeks. Their first two albums were self-produced but this third one was recorded by none other than Steve Albini. Sounds pretty good from what I've heard so far.
The Following User Says Thank You to snootchiebootchies For This Useful Post:
Wow, incredible news that there is finally going to be a Husker Du reissue. Given the acrimonious relationship between Grant Hart and Bob Mould, I thought I would never live to see any reissues. Husker Du are like gods to me. They were the ones who hooked me into post-hardcore and punk rock, and everything has flowed from there.
One more note: Even though Numero Group's website says the album won't ship until November, I got a link to download the MP3 files immediately after I ordered (except for the unreleased tracks from Metal Circus).
Quote:
Numerophiles-
Seven years ago we started down a path. What began as a simple inquiry snowballed into a sprawling and tangled mess of copyright claims, interpersonal drama, lawyers, endless hours on I-94, cassettes, flyers, master tapes, lawyers, disappointment, tears, and yes, lawyers. We don’t have an official motto, but maybe we need to have this one emblazoned on our front door: Difficulty is our specialty.
When we dreamed up the 200 series that summer of 2010, we had only one band in mind: Hüsker Dü. We approached Grant Hart with a crude mock-up and a lot of moxie. He rewarded us with a swim in Cedar Lake and several years of cryptic emails and late night phone calls. Greg Norton threw up his hands at the onset and told us to let him know when something real was happening. And for the first five years we barely registered on Bob Mould’s radar, sending packages and messages into the void on the hopes that something, anything might just stick. Persistence pays. Don’t let anyone tell you different. For seven years we held open catalog number 200 on the hope that these notoriously difficult dudes would come around. In August of 2016 they finally did. And after a year of listening and sorting and interviewing, we’re extremely pleased to announce the arrival of the first Hüsker Dü-approved reissue in 25 years.
Promo from Numero Group:
Additional information about the unreleased tracks from Metal Circus - spoilered as this post is already becoming quite large
Spoiler!
Quote:
Hüsker Dü: Extra Circus
When Hüsker Dü lit out for the west coast a few days after Xmas 1982, they did so with twelve new songs in the chamber. The road-battered group arrived at Total Access in Redondo Beach the second week of January intending to cut the entirety of their new repertoire in a single all day session, but the power had been shut off just prior to their arrival. “We were trying to jump power from other parts of the building,” recalled Bob Mould. The session ended up taking two days, and from those twelve, only seven would make their blistering 1983 Metal Circus. Left on the cutting room floor were “Heavy Handed,” “You Think I’m Scared,” “Won’t Change,” “Is Today The Day?” and “Standing At The Sea.” Several would leak out on bootlegs over the years, but when a previously thought-to-be-lost safety master turned up in the process of making Savage Young Dü, it seemed like the perfect cliff hanger for the next project.
We first saw the color negative for Metal Circus back in 2010, when a mysterious package showed up from Grant Hart. Hart had painstakingly set the scene up in the office of Revolution guitarist Des Dickerson’s father in downtown St. Paul’s Milton Building. The desk is a visual representation of the Hüsker’s discography to date; the framed photo of Mao references the cover of Statues, a Statue of Liberty calendar represents In A Free Land, magnifying in on the desk one can spy the logo that appears on the back cover of Everything Falls Apart. The plane’s wing carries the catalog number for Land Speed Record: NAR007. “The whole thing was the most satisfying graphics project that I ever connected with Hüsker Dü,” Grant Hart told Andrew Earles. “By the time it was all set up, I had to race the sun and deal with drunken street revelers getting in the way of the shot. The shoot was on St. Patrick’s day, and there were a ton of throw aways where you can see the tips of those party horns entering the frame.”
Extra Circus is only available from numerogroup.com.
The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to snootchiebootchies For This Useful Post:
I wonder if Grant's illness was the impetus to finally get a reissue done. Although I'm very happy about this release, I would much rather have Grant healthy and continuing to make music.
I saw Grant Hart do a solo show at the Hi-Fi Club in 2005. When I arrived, Grant Hart was standing near the front door casually smoking a cigarette. People were walking in and out of the club but nobody appeared to notice Grant. As soon as I saw him, I kicked myself for not bringing a Husker Du or Nova Mob album for him to sign. I said hi to him and made stupid small talk and told him I was a big fan. I was super awkward. But he was very warm and friendly to me.
It was a great show. Lorrie Matheson was one of the openers, and The May Kings was the other opener. One performed a Husker cover, and the other performed a Nova Mob cover.
I also remember it was one of those shows where there was alot of loud chit chat coming from the bar area. I remember being really annoyed by it as it was distracting me from the show. I will never understand why people will pay good money to see an artist and then spend the whole show ignoring the artist.
I wish Grant all the best.
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to snootchiebootchies For This Useful Post: