My money was on Grant Hart after Husker Du broke up. He wrote some of the Husker’s best songs and may have even been a bit more consistent than campadre Bob Mould.And then-within months, it seemed-he released the acoustic song “2541,” as in 2541 Nicolette Avenue, Minneapolis. As in the Husker’s rehearsal space. And it seemed a heartbreaking account of the band breaking up under the guise of a couple moving out of an apartment and moving away from each other. The line “things are so much different now/I guess the situation’s reversed/And it will probably not be the last time I have to be out by the 1st” ranks as good as anything that Mould ever wrote, but it’s Bob that gets all the critical accolades.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Bob too. In fact, I remember a fight I had with my ex-wife once after she called Mould a “sellout” upon learning that he was writing story episodes for WCW wrestling.
But Hart was completely off the radar; there were no verbal volleys about him, because he seemed to drop off the face of the Earth after Nova Mob’s The Last Days Of Pompeii.
I remember occasionally hearing stories about him, how he looked like he was struggling with addiction.
And there was little music to counteract those rumors.
Grant Hart recently made his way back to Iowa and visited Des Moines with a set. Our man in the D.M. reports, “He played my requests of “2541” and “Sorry Somehow.” That was cool.”But damn if the dude don’t look haggard. And you would think the hipsters in the Twin Cities could add a buck to a fishbowl and chip in to buy him a leather jacket.
What’s with the getup? Did Hendrix’s “If 6 Was 9” inspire it? Someone needs to call Robyn Hitchcock and tell him that we’ve found the jacket from his Fegmania tour.
For real, those All Tomorrow’s Parties folks need to waive a shitload of money in front of Mould and Hart and get Husker Du back together for a reunion show.
If Greg Norton plays hardball, just threaten his food joint with endless surprise visits from the health inspector or something.
And he had better still have that handlebar mustache too.
Getting back to Grant: he has a new record called Hot Wax, which will probably sell as many copies as the Husker’s first single.
6 comments:
Ha ha. I almost forgot about him. I saw Husker Du play in December of 1984 in my friend's studio above the Soap Opera in Iowa City. It was a great show...From what I can remember.
Strangely enough I just found out about Hot Wax earlier today. It's not bad; couple of cool tunes on there.
Grant may have looked a little rough, but his voice was in fine shape. The new songs he played sounded good too.
Husker Du is one of my favorite bands of all time. They came along for me at a very impressionable time in my high school years lyrically & musically as I was just learning to play the guitar about the time that I discovered them and I always dug both Bob & Grants stuff. I'll have to check out tour dates cause I'd dig hearing 2541 & Sorry Somehow live.
As long as the tunes are good, I don't care what he looks like. Mark E. Smith's looks haven't stopped me from loving the Fall. Anywho.
I would have loved to see them in '84. You're a lucky gal, Churlita.
One of these days, I'll write about the show that I saw them at in '87-in Decorah, Iowa, of all places-during what would be their final tour together. The awesome The Living End is pretty representative of the show that I saw.
"As long as the tunes are good, I don't care what he looks like."
Agreed. Now, if his ragged appearance is from just plain aging, fine. But if someone who has a history of drug abuse is suspiciously not looking that great, shouldn't it be cause for concern?
Two years ago, I wrote a glowing review of a live performance by a beloved '90s alt-rock figure--who had put on a great show--and was chastised for not bringing up what some long-time fans thought was the artist's erratic, drug-influenced demeanor, after years of sobriety.
I'm just sayin'...
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