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GRANT HART | |||||||||||||||||
Single Review - '2541' - SST Records 1988 | |||||||||||||||||
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The original post-Husker Du release for Hart, this early version of the track later re-recorded for 'Intolerance' is a lo-fi demonstration of the unique and exceptional talent that he possesses. Restrained yet urgent guitars fed through a phaser effect bring the song up from a melodic but simple beginning to a crescendo of crashing drums and droning bassline, with the esctatic vocals following the emotion of the lyric, concerned with reminiscing about good times now lost forever. Think of a modern, left-field, 'Sgt. Peppers'-era Beatles and you wouldn't be far off the mark. 'Come, Come', also re-recorded for the debut solo album to follow 2 years later, takes a lyrical swipe at fellow ex-Husker Du member Bob Mould, with a riff that is both simple and yet complex enough to sound complete in this mostly acoustic rendering. Closing track, 'Let Go' is almost throwaway in comparison, with a seemingly improvised melody and spoken vocal that doesn't play to any of Hart's well documented strengths. The production suggests maybe a Pixies feel was the intention, but the finished product lacks any of the charm or menace of Black Francis and company. |
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Single review - 'All of My Senses' - SST records 1990 | |||||||||||||||||
Initially notable for it's lack of adrenaline rush guitars, this early solo release from the ex-Husker Du member is proof that being a drummer was not the only thing Hart brought to the studio for his former band. Essentially built upon an upbeat, almost hymnal synth riff, the song works it's way up into a gospel confessional, proclaiming that at last the singer is functioning without any of the toxins that used to dull his mental agility. As if to remind us what a glorious feeling this must be, the following track, 'The Main' (an acoustic version of the song from the 'Intolerance' album), deals with the cycle of drug addiction, and the repetitiveness of copping from dealers, feeling okay for a while and then having to return to places that given a plausible choice you'd rather not return to. The tune is weirdly familiar, and there is a distinct Irish folk influence that is the driving force behind the melody. Final track, 'Signed D.C.', is a self-pitying blues, again recorded acoustically, which given a fuller production treatment, could easily have matched any of Harts later work, but here suffers from the minimal, 'man and guitar' approach. |
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