Zen Arcade, Hüsker Dü, 1984, 1:10
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
So, I'm thoroughly taken aback by this. I thought I knew the Dü a tiny bit, from some of their later stuff, and I know Bob Mould's work, and I've loved the punk-folk track "Never Talking To You Again" for decades. But, uh. I guess I didn't really know the Dü at all. I had no idea that Hüsker Dü was so hardcore. I had no idea that they had made anything as sonically ferocious as "Beyond the Threshold" or "Pride." It's not really my favorite thing. And it's overlong at 70 minutes. All that hardcore assault gets exhausting. What a wuss I am! Still, there's some good stuff here, and you can't deny the young lads' angsty enthusiasm. Favorite tracks: "Never Talking To You Again" (very much an outlier), "Something I Learned Today," "Chartered Trips."
