HÜSKER DÜ (guitarist/vocalist Bob Mould, bassist Greg Norton, and drummer/vocalist Grant Hart) turned up the decibels between 1979 and 1988 with no less than 6 LPs.
The 5th one, named CANY APPLE GREY, came out on 17 March 1986, today 40 years ago. It was their first major label release, though Warner Bros.
Candy Apple Grey was the first Hüsker Dü album to chart on the Billboard Top 200,
but despite positive reviews, exposure with the singles on radio as well as MTV, it
only went to No. 140.
AllMusic said in retrospect: “Demonstrating that punks can mature without losing
their edge, Mould inverts the rules of conventional confessional singer/songwriter songs
with these two haunting numbers, and in doing so, he illustrates the faults with the relatively staid post-hardcore punk that dominates the remainder of the record.”
Released: September 1986 – debut LP AllMusic:“Throwing Muses’ self-titled 1986 debut is still a startling collision of punk energy, folky melodicism, and Kristin Hersh’s mercurial voice and lyrics… A powerful debut, Throwing Muses puts the work of most self-consciously “tortured” artists to shame; its fluid, effortless emotional shifts may not make for the most accessible music, but they’re unquestionably genuine.” Score: 5/5.
Released: 15 November 1986 – debut LP AllMusic: “Perhaps Licensed to Ill was inevitable, a white group blending rock and rap, giving them the first number one album in hip-hop history. But that reading of the album’s history gives short shrift to the Beastie Boys; producer Rick Rubin, and his label, Def Jam… The Beastie Boys fueled this record through their passion for subcultures, pop culture, jokes, and the intoxicating power of wordplay.” Score: 5/5.
Released: 29 September 1986 – fourth LP AllMusic:“This was a New Order with nothing more to prove – witness the tossed-off
lyrics – aside from continuing to make great music… the songs and the band’s production
had reached such a high level. Score: 4/5.
Released: March 1986 – fifth LP AllMusic: “Moving to a major label doesn’t affect Hüsker Dü’s sound greatly — although the production is more full-bodied than Spot’s razor-thin work, the Hüskers don’t change their blazing attack at all.” Score: 3.5/5.
Released: 3 November 1986 – fourth LP AllMusic:“The Bad Seeds turn from the interpretive triumph of Kicking Against the Pricks to another strong high, the mostly-original ‘Your Funeral…My Trial’… Arguably Cave and company have by now so clearly established their overall style that the album is much more a refinement of the past than anything else, but so good is their work that resistance is near impossible.” Score: 4/5.
