Skip to main content

Hüsker Dü - Sorry Somehow

Winter comes and I think of bands, hunkered down in basements, turning up their amps to survive the bleak weather. As I stroll through the idyllic neighborhoods of my town, I sometimes wonder if the next wave of punk rebellion might be brewing beneath the restless facade of raised ranches and capes. Perhaps this is just the anachronistic dream of a music lover on the verge of a mid-life crisis. Hopefully not.

 During the early 80s, Minneapolis (a somewhat sleepy town) was home to a thriving underground rock scene that gave birth to acts like The Replacements, The Suburbs, Soul Asylum and a band that named themselves after a board game, Hüsker Dü. Hüsker Dü has always been the least accessible to me. Their sound was edgier and songs tended to be faster and forelorn. Lately, I've really fallen in love with the group's uncompromisingly original approach to music. Their songs endure in a way that some other bands from this era haven't.

 Tonight's sonic selection is the first single from Candy Apple Grey, Hüsker Dü's major label debut. This song seems to capture the sense of cabin fever that can seize a snowbound rock & roller. The tune was written and sung by drummer, Grant Hart (who passed away earlier this year). Is it me, or does Hart sound a little like a punk version of Paul Stanley on this number? 

Comments

Post a Comment

Trending Tracks

U.K. - In The Dead of Night

In the late 70s, as punk and post-punk bands spiraled towards their new wave destinies, prog dinosaurs stood paralyzed in the shadows. Bands like the Sex Pistols were meteors, igniting a global firestorm that would trigger prog's extinction. The British music press (Melody Maker, Sounds, NME, etc.), once proponents of prog darlings Genesis, Yes and ELP, now bashed any band releasing songs in odd time signatures and singing about aliens and whales. The punk revolution had turned the U.K. music industry and press on its head within a year (1976-1977). For me, this is one of the most interesting times in pop music. Although prog groups saw their audiences rapidly dwindle (Yes audiences had dropped from 20,000 to 3,000 by 1980's Drama tour), many record labels had built fortunes on the works of prog artists and were willing to foot the bill for some interesting transitional experiments. Yes' Drama , ELPs' Works , Genesis' . ..And Then There Were Three... were p...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Alarm - Marching On (Live)

Never underestimate the power of corporeal politics. Today, hundreds of thousands of people marched through the streets of American cities demanding political action on gun control. In downtown Portland, ME thousands streamed down Congress St. and gathered at City Hall. I was there. It was powerful. When you are united with others in your community, marching, there is an energy -- a sense of unstoppable momentum. It is also reassuring. We are not alone in standing up to the insanity. We are one. I am inspired by the Americans (especially the women and young people) who have once again discovered the power of peaceful, non-violent protest. If we continue to march in these numbers, politicians will hear us. The continuing volume of our chants and rhythm of our marching feet, knocking at their door, will remind them to legislate on behalf of us -- the people. All of the money in the world can't pay back the moral deficit and heal the wounded conscience of NRA-backed legislators...
Post a Comment
Read more