release date: Mar. 7, 2025
format: digital (11 x File, FLAC)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,56]
producer: Bob Mould
label: BMG - nationality: USA
Track highlights: 1. "Here We Go Crazy" - 2. "Neanderthal" - 3. "Breathing Room" - 4. "Hard to Get" - 9. "You Need to Shine" - 11. "Your Side"
14th studio album by grunge rock-forefather Bob Mould following 4½ years after Blue Hearts (Sep. 2020) is not surprisingly an album filled with much energy. The album is Mould's first on BMG after having released a long series of albums on Merge Records but with Mould himself in his usual roles as songwriter, composer, and producer, this new album shouldn't result in many raised eyebrows regarding style or themes. In the past, Mould has experimented with his soundscape and the use of instrumentation, however, since Silver Age from 2012, he has been quite consistently on an energetic alt. rock platform, boldly shaped via his preference for power pop and with hints to his more distant past in Sugar and Hüsker Dü in a more traditional guitar-rock setting. Comparing with his most recent album Blue Hearts, this is a wee bit harsher, slightly more direct, less politically oriented, and instead it's filled to the brim with sheer emotions. This both fits nicely with the applied amount of energy and a melodic drive, and then at times you could argue that it tends to touch on repetitiveness but we're talking about freak*** Bob Mould here!, and that guy should forever be granted every right and permission there is to go ahead and plug his electric guitar into his amplifier and have his fun at shouting and confronting whatever he feels like - be it the world, himself, his relationships, himself growing older, or the country's intolerable leader! Bob Mould is a sort of valve of modern times. Let the steam come out!
I have followed his work since the final two albums with Hüsker Dü, and he has always been an artist whose work I've shared a particular soft spot for, and most of the time he has been able to enrich my life, which is why I remain a stable fan. He's not an artist who invent music any longer but he's a guarantee of quality and a voice that speaks up for humanity as well as being someone who takes a stand against stupidity, which is another good reason to follow this great artist.
Here We Go Crazy is basically what we have come to expect from Mr. Mould, and once again it's relevant and recommended!
[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars]
