I just need to get this out of the way … Having grown up in Minneapolis as a punk-obsessed teen, reviewing a Hüsker Dü release is a big frickin’ deal for me. Alongside The Replacements and Dillinger Four, they formed the unholy trinity of Twin Cities punk rock, essential listening for anyone trying to break into the scene. These bands have remained a staple throughout the ups and downs of my adult life: a point of comfort, but also of continuous discovery. With that said, it’s perhaps the Hüskers who’ve managed to burrow the deepest.
This new collection, 1985: The Miracle Year (out now via Numero Group), captures live recordings from a particularly frigid January 1985 set at First Avenue in Minneapolis, plus an additional 20 tracks from the subsequent year of touring that followed. Calling 1985 a miracle year for Hüsker Dü is not an overstatement. This was when one of the most talented bands to emerge from the American underground hit full stride, when piss and vinegar, hard-earned precision, and virtuosic songwriting all collided. With the seminal Zen Arcade having just been released the previous July, this year would bring their finest hour, New Day Rising, and the brilliantly pop-forward Flip Your Wig, which pushed them to the edges of the mainstream.
There’s a bit of house noise and an intro from the MC that drops you right into the black box (First Ave) before the Hüskers kick things off with “New Day Rising.” It’s a nice touch, followed by a spirited performance that’s both tight and economical. The quality of the live recordings here is impressive. For the uninitiated, the fidelity of the studio records has often been a barrier; these performances could easily connect the dots.
Talk about a murderer’s row of tunes: the next four tracks are “It’s Not Funny Anymore,” “Everything Falls Apart,” “The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill,” and “I Apologize.” Good grief.
The set barrels through songs from all their releases up to that point, plus a handful that would appear on Flip Your Wig. The band even throws in some fitting covers, the Byrds’ “Eight Miles High” and two Beatles songs, “Helter Skelter” and “Ticket to Ride.” To me, this perfectly captures what Hüsker Dü achieved: truly timeless songwriting filtered through the lens of the 1980’s American underground. Lennon/McCartney, Strummer/Jones, Hart/Mould—each a push-and-pull dynamic that defined a generation.
The second set of songs, titled More Miracles, bursts out of the gate with a brilliant performance of “Don’t Want to Know If You Are Lonely,” one of those cuts that makes you ask yourself, “Are Hüsker Dü the greatest band of all time?” Ultimately, that’s for you to decide, but this collection, at the very least, lets you feel the power of a brilliant band at the height of their powers. Needless to say, this is a must-own for diehards, casual fans, and the uninitiated alike, anyone interested in expanding what they know about the era, the craft of songwriting, and the endless breadth of what sits beneath the punk rock umbrella.
