Bob Mould: Classic or Dud?

He just seems so unimaginative, so lacking in spark. Sure, he had a good guitar sound. That doesn't give him license to make bog-standard indie fuzz songs for 20 years.

Sugar: Q. good.

Solo: Hard work.

Mould solo: meh. Some of the Richard Thompson-esque tunes on Workbook like "Brasilia Crossed With Trenton" are top-notch.

http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Museum/7147/bobby.html

(via Bob's blog)

No mention of the last album? My take:

http://www.citypages.com/databank/26/1295/article13721.asp

Mould is performing for free in Minneapolis June 22, at the Bryant-Lake Bowl, and is on the Henry Rollins show this Friday...

I came upon Husker Du pretty late, but for a band that was so universally praised from so many different corners, I wasn't all that impressed. I recently stumbled upon a blog maintained by Ben Weasel (of Screeching Weasel fame) and a post where he talks about breaking out the old Husker Du canon and being mostly unimpressed compared to how amazing it sounded back in the day. I'll submit him as my expert witness.

I hear theres a regularly thrown party in the DC area, specifically catered to over 30's gay men that he DJs at (shirtless) and I think this is very good.

the first six friends on his myspace page all look very Bob-like, its eerie... i'm a huge fan, and interviewed him a couple of years ago, and he was much fun. i listen to his solo stuff and sugar so rarely nowadays, and mostly if i'm feeling especially blue, and i'm not as convinced that he was a better songwriter than grant as i was when i was younger (not that it matters), but i always enjoy it.

if i were to listen to 'can't fight it' right now, i would be a mess.

the bobby hill=bob mould page is very funny.

hahahahaha:

"I have noted down the people who are saying they like it and will be paying less attention to their opinions in future: sorry and all, you're lovely people but it's that mediocre."

Quite possibly my favorite Bob.

His "Blowoff" dj setlists look pretty predictable to me

Bob's got another rock cd coming out with Brendan Canty on drums, on the Anti label in February

http://www.spinner.com/2007/12/04/bob-mould-returns-with-district-line-exclusive-mp3/

Anti has been capturing a lot of veterans on their second wind. That'd be cool if it happened again.

Yes it would. I didn't like Mould's electronic stuff, but the last rock album he did had at least one great song (New No. 1), so I'm hopeful.

New one hailed as a "return to form"

which form?

rooock n' roll!

Saw DISTRICT LINE in HMV and felt sorry -but also proud- for it,
Had a place of its own on the 'new release' shelf. Despite it being late in the day it was clear to me that the staff had either been restacking to keep it neat after the rush, or no fker had bought it. I feared the latter and purchased to make a dent.

It's not bad. But not great, although I sense a grower.

Please kids - listen to 'Who Needs dreams' and enjoy . Had it on a loop. Grandad.

I cannot stop listening to "Believe What You're Saying"

http://modulate.blogspot.com/2008/09/press-release-from-little-brown.html

BOB MOULD TO PUBLISH AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Michael Pietsch, Publisher of Little, Brown and Company, announced this week that Bob Mould will be writing his autobiography in collaboration with Michael Azerrad, author of the bestselling Our Band Could Be Your Life and Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana.

The memoir will, for the first time ever, delve deeply into Mould's life as a musician and his experiences with Hüsker Dü, as a solo artist, and in his most commercially viable and successful work as leader of the 90s indie rock kingpins Sugar. He will also tell the story of his other lives, including his internal struggle with his sexuality, the coming-out process, and his subsequent embrace of, and service to, the LGBT community; his work as a creative consultant / director in the world of pro wrestling; his work as a record producer, including seminal projects by Soul Asylum and Magnapop; and his foray into electronic / dance music, including the popular BLOWOFF club events held nationwide.

Bob Mould said, "For many years, people have asked if and when I would write my autobiography. I have always looked forward to this point in time, where I could tell my stories, to answer the many questions about the music and the lifestyle, and how they inform the creative process. I have not been alone on this ride: friends and foes, mentors and associates, peers, lovers, all traveling by my side. The ride so far has been incredible, and I hope to do my memory right in documenting the journey."

It is expected to be published in autumn 2010.

I've ordered this already!

Autumn 2010? FFS

30th anniversary world tour with original members, all reading excepts to promote Bob's book- in between the hits. Surely?

Do you think Grant will get a chapter?

I hope they all write a fucking book, even if Greg's is a list of recipes

Excerpts.

Sorry journoes/English teachers etc

I'll be buying it for sure

wrestling and gay stuff could be intriguing...

I just heard "See A Little Light" in a TV ad for...something. Fuck. Can't remember what it was, but it sure was inconfuckinggruous.

^^ TIAA-CREF iirc

Update: I cannot stop listening to "Circles"

epic 9-minute live take...

Mr. iTunes keeps shuffling Zen Arcade and the Zen Arcade rough mixes in with a bunch of 00s metal, and I'm getting a refresher on how astonishing Mould's playing was at that point. But then Spot's digital effects rack and Bob's "I'm a serious songwriter now" attitude came into the picture. He's been loud since then, but did he ever really shred again? "Plans I Make" is the only one I can think of.

"Plans I Make" is a total rampage.

Yeah. About as heavy as you can get.

Funny, I just spun "Bob Mould" and "The Last Dog And Pony Show" for the first time in years. Both have strong moments and Bob-by-the-numbers moments as well. I much prefer the two pre-Sugar solo albums and haven't bothered with his 21st century output.

A review of his memoir:

Hüsker Dü played faster and louder than almost any band of its era. The noise was an evocation of, and a cover for, Mr. Mould’s roiling emotions. He knew he was gay at 5, but throughout most of his career he fled from the stereotypical gay lifestyle. There was nothing campy or effeminate about Bob Mould.

After the years with Hüsker Dü and Sugar blow past, “See a Little Light” changes, and so does Mr. Mould. He begins to seek out pieces of what he calls “the big gay puzzle” and, typically for him, does nothing halfway. He gets buff. He becomes a D.J. and makes electronic music. He begins to describe himself as a “bear” and hangs out in leather bars.

Mr. Mould had several long-term relationships, but once those end, his libido begins to roar the way his guitar did. He writes about his fondness for gay military porn and sleeps with “someone from every branch of the military.” He has so many one-night stands that he learns to “keep a Costco family pack of toothbrushes on hand” because he is, he says, a “thoughtful whore.”

Read it the other week. He writes prose like he wrote lyrics: dourly, and with almost no trace of humour. He warns at the beginning that readers should not expect anecdotes, and boy does he deliver on that warning. He comes across as self-justificatory, misanthropic and really rather boring. He intensely resents (in order of resentment): Grant Hart, assorted former lovers, Greg Norton, assorted former label people. Every time he admits fault for something, there's a "but …" to follow. The misery lifts rather when he discovers his bear identity, but it's still not a barrel of fun. Best section is the stuff about wrestling, which is actually interesting, maybe because it's the one part of his story where he is not the most important creative person around, and knows it.

Still, it made me go back to New Day Rising and Flip Your Wig, which was enjoyable.

Big Washington Post profile today that doesn't say too much(it's a cleaner version of the above). I want to hear more about his songwriting and wonder what his memoir says about that.

He really doesn't talk too much about his songwriting in the book.

"Not campy or effeminate"...is this some people's ideas of what all gays are? I had no idea he was a "bear"!

Oh, and MBV at its loudest usually hovers around 120dB, and has reportedly reached close to 130 at its absolute noise zenith, so it seems unlikely Mould comes close to that. Mould is loud, but it's not disorientingly loud like MBV (and a few others, like Mogwai, High on Fire, etc.)

this is from the FU:EL tour and sounds pretty good to me

(it was also the bonus disc on certain pressings of the 'besides' comp)

(actually saturday)

Bob Mould got married today. 💕 Congrats Bob and Don. pic.twitter.com/3x8fH1qepR

— Roni (@roni1133) May 7, 2023

http://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fvk2_QNX0AALK1l?format=jpg&name=large

You will lose your mind
When Bob Moulds are two of a kind