Having had the privilege of reviewing the brand new album from Bob Mould and being so impressed with it that I’d rank it right at the top of the man’s solo output having had it on constant rotation for a couple of months I wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity of seeing the guy play the pack room venue of Rough Trade Bristol on a Sunday afternoon the weekend the album is released. Cue the hottest sold-out room imaginable, even with the air-con working over time it was akin to being dumped into a sauna with 180 like-minded folk all having forgone their Sunday Lunch to be here for some sonic sustenance and a sermon according to Bob Mould.

Bob ambled on stage right on cue and proceeded to spend the next forty-five minutes wringing the neck of his guitar and sounding bigger and louder than 99.9% of bands with his one-man electric guitar assault. ‘The War’ opened proceedings before he dove into the archive and dished up a wonderful Husker Du classic in ‘Flip Your Wig’ but I wanted to hear some of the songs that have peppered the ether around HQ for weeks and so four of the next five tracks were as familiar to my ears as the Husker Du tracks he offered up. ‘Hard To Get’, the title track and the magnificent ‘Neanderthal’ followed each other into the red-hot Rough Trade Sauna Room. ‘Breathing Room’ was inappropriate because, by the midway point, there didn’t seem to be much oxygen in the building not with Mould cooking it. We were also treated to ‘Too Far Down’ and ‘Celebrity Summer’ from the hymn book of Husker Du but there was a poignant moment when Mould offered the Bristol audience an apology on behalf of the sane portion of his home nation with all the madness that’s coming out of the White House currently. It wasn’t needed because most if not all present are behind Mould but ‘When Your Heart Is Broken’ seemed appropriate but hopeful that things can and will change.

As we headed into the home straight and Mould headed outside for some air and to cap off this matinee performance with 180 signatures of his new record he entertained us with a magnificent rendition of ‘Hoover Dam’ before ending the show with a devastating ‘Makes No Sense At All’. It was then great to show Mould our appreciation personally and the chance to thank him for a stunning new LP my only disappointment is we won’t get the chance to do this again soon and/or hear these songs with a full band but we can wait for that. If you get the chance to catch any of his up-and-coming shows my advice be it full band or Bob and his electric guitar take it with both hands you absolutely won’t be disappointed. Bob Mould and ‘Here We Go Crazy’ rocked. Now, if only they had dry clothes facilities and a towel down it would have been perfect.

Author: Dom Daley