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Written by Jason Green & Mike Koehler Monday, 25 August 2014 00:00

Two superfans of the Hüsker Dü and Sugar singer/songwriter/guitarist take you on a trip through the man's expansive discography in anticipation of his upcoming appearance September 19 at the Old Rock House.

 

 

 

 

Jason Green: Bob Mould is the definition of a musical cult hero. Since his career began in 1979, Mould’s work has bubbled under the radar of the musical mainstream, covering a wide swath of genres along the way, from the pioneering hardcore and punk-pop of Hüsker Dü to the acoustic folk stylings of his solo debut Workbook, from the alternative rock perfection of his trio Sugar in the early ’90s to his time as an electronica artist and in-demand DJ in the 2000s. Despite the sonic variety, Mould’s work is always introspective and heartfelt, leading to a listener connection that can frequently result in a fandom that borders on cultlike obsession.

Mike and I, dear readers, are two members of that cult. And with Mould finally returning to St. Louis for the first time in nearly a decade (courtesy of a September 19 show at the Old Rock House), we thought this would be the perfect time to reflect on his illustrious career by diving as deeply as possible into the man’s discography.

So welcome to “Compositions for the Young and Old,” your guide through Mould’s discography by two superfans. We’ll be exercising said superfandom by taking a look at each album Mould has released over his career, from 1981’s hardcore blitzkrieg Land Speed Record through this year’s terrific return to form Beauty & Ruin. We’ll be discussing each album’s place in Mould’s overall oeuvre; what we thought of the album when we first encountered it and how our perceptions have changed over time; and our favorite and least favorite songs (or “Dogs & Ponies,” as it were). We’ll also be giving each album a letter grade (graded on a Bob Mould curve so that we don’t give everything an A…heh). We hope dedicated Mould fans get some interesting insight, and that the uninitiated can use our thoughts to figure out how to approach his daunting discography.

So who are we? My compatriot, Mike Koehler, has been reviewing music for PLAYBACK:stl since 2011, and is the author of the column “Up Around the Bend.” My name is Jason Green, and I’ve been with PLAYBACK:stl since 2004, where I’ve been lucky enough to interview Mr. Mould (henceforth referred to colloquially as “Bob”) twice (which you can read here and here). I first discovered Bob in 1992, when my brother brought home a copy of Sugar’s Copper Blue from college. I enjoyed the hell out of it, but it remained my only exposure to Bob’s work until 1998, when a chance conversation on the internet led me to buy his then-latest, The Last Dog & Pony Show, shortly before he came to St. Louis to play a show at Mississippi Nights. And the rest is history.

What about you, Mike? How did you first discover Bob?

Mike Koehler: I found Bob pretty much in the same way you did, through Copper Blue. I knew of Hüsker Dü and who Bob was prior to that, but never listened or paid that much attention to them. Copper Blue just absolutely blew me away. I was in my second year in college and in a really bad place emotionally. That album just struck a chord with me so much. From there, I went back and discovered and learned.

I must have gone through three copies of Copper Blue from ’92 to ’94, just from the amount of damage I did to the discs from playing. I had to learn all I could about the guy that gave us such a perfect album, who gave us “If I Can’t Change Your Mind.” When I played Hüsker Dü’s 1985 album, New Day Rising, for the first time, I knew I found what I was looking for. This was during the height of grunge and before I fell in love with all things Britpop, so it helped fill a void for me. And it has stayed there since.

Jason: For years, my lone copy of Copper Blue was actually the B-side on a tape I dubbed off my brother’s CD copy. (The A-side: Denis Leary’s No Cure for Cancer.)

That album hit me at just the right time, too. I was only 13 and being blown away left and right by stuff like Nirvana and Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains and the Pixies, and then here comes this deliriously Pixies-esque album with huge pop hooks, gloriously distorted guitars, and this dude with a nasal whine that sounded like it came from outer space. It totally blew my mind.

Mike: It really was a great album for recovering from a bad relationship.

Jason: I was only 13; I didn’t find that out ’til later!

Mike: It was a nice change to see a guy who could rock out, hard, and not look like either a dirty bum or a sales clerk at Guitar Center with the long hair and general “rock” look of the day. He was like that big brother everyone thought was great but slightly shy—until he picked up his guitar, that is. I remember seeing interviews with Kurt Loder and him discussing his hearing problems from years of touring with Hüsker Dü. I had to hear what that was about as he didn’t look the part.

Jason: The liner notes for Copper Blue (or most of his other albums, for that matter) didn’t have photos, so I didn’t know what he looked like until I saw him live!

Mike: You saw him around the time he was working for WCW [we’ll discuss that hilarity later on], so you saw a much different Bob than “The Year Punk Broke” Bob.

Jason: Very true! All right, enough jabbering. Let’s get on with the process, shall we? Head over to Compositions for the Young & Old Pt. 2, dear reader, to read our thoughts on Hüsker Dü’s debut album, 1982’s Land Speed Record!