Blue Hearts (album)
| Blue Hearts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 25, 2020 | |||
| Recorded | 2019–2020 | |||
| Studio | Electrical Audio, Chicago Granary Music, San Francisco | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 35:37 | |||
| Label | Merge | |||
| Producer | Bob Mould | |||
| Bob Mould chronology | ||||
| ||||
Blue Hearts is an album by the American alternative rock musician Bob Mould, released in 2020.[1][2] Mould considered the tracks to be protest songs.[3]
The album peaked at No. 181 on the Billboard 200.[4]
Production
[edit]Mould was joined on the album by drummer Jon Wurster and bassist Jason Narducy.[5] Thirteen of Blue Heart's 14 tracks are less than three minutes in length.[6] Produced by Mould, it was recorded at Electrical Audio, in Chicago.[7][8]
Critical reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [9] |
| Rolling Stone |  [10] |
| Winnipeg Free Press | [11] |
The New Yorker concluded that Mould "calls forth his hardest and most focussed music in years ... These tuneful guitar blitzkriegs have plenty of room for playfulness alongside the bile."[12] Rolling Stone wrote that "what makes it jaw-dropping is the precision with which Mould has focused his ire on conservatives, evangelicals, homophobes, while leaving room for some self-criticism as well."[10]
The Morning Call thought that the "blunt lyrics are matched by a furious musical assault."[13] The Winnipeg Free Press determined that "Narducy and Wurster ... are lifers and whose relentless rock ‘n’ roll groove is the perfect complement to Mould’s spiky melodicism."[11] The Sunday Times opined that the album "represents a howl of anger, its muddy production heightening the sense of gloom and claustrophobia."[14]
AllMusic deemed the album "a fast, furious, passionate broadside," writing that "the sound of Blue Hearts bears a certain resemblance to the music Mould made with Hüsker Dü in its physical power and lack of emotional compromise."[9]
Track listing
[edit]All tracks are written by Bob Mould
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Heart on My Sleeve" | 1:58 |
| 2. | "Next Generation" | 2:20 |
| 3. | "American Crisis" | 2:28 |
| 4. | "Fireball" | 1:39 |
| 5. | "Forecast of Rain" | 2:26 |
| 6. | "When You Left" | 2:32 |
| 7. | "Siberian Butterfly" | 2:10 |
| 8. | "Everyth!ng to You" | 2:51 |
| 9. | "Racing to the End" | 1:51 |
| 10. | "Baby Needs a Cookie" | 2:57 |
| 11. | "Little Pieces" | 2:37 |
| 12. | "Leather Dreams" | 2:53 |
| 13. | "Password to My Soul" | 2:53 |
| 14. | "The Ocean" | 3:56 |
Personnel
[edit]- Bob Mould – lead vocals, guitar, keyboards, percussion
- Jason Narducy – bass, backing vocals
- Jon Wurster – drums, percussion
Additional musicians
- Prague TV Orchestra – strings on "American Crisis"
- Alison Chesley; Paul Martens – orchestral score transcriptions
Production
- Bob Mould – producer
- Beau Sorenson – engineer
- Matthew Barnhart – mastering
- Daniel Murphy – art design
- Blake Little – photography
References
[edit]- ^ "Bob Mould on the Unfiltered Truth of New LP Blue Hearts". SPIN. September 22, 2020.
- ^ "Bob Mould Unplugs To Perform Songs From His Latest Album, 'Blue Hearts' : World Cafe Words and Music from WXPN". NPR.
- ^ "Bob Mould, 'Blue Hearts'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 24 Sep 2020. p. WE3.
- ^ "Bob Mould". Billboard.
- ^ Kopp, Bill (September 29, 2021). "Bob Mould Wears 'Blue Hearts' on His Sleeve". SF Weekly.
- ^ Horn, Mark C. "Bob Mould Has a New Album and Plenty to Say About the State of the Country". Phoenix New Times.
- ^ Curley, John (Nov 2020). "BOB MOULD". Goldmine. 46 (11): 23.
- ^ Riemenschneider, Chris (23 Sep 2020). "Bob Mould's on fire with new album". Star Tribune. p. E1.
- ^ a b "Blue Hearts – Bob Mould | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ^ a b Grow, Kory (September 24, 2020). "Bob Mould Rages Gloriously Against Injustice on 'Blue Hearts'". Rolling Stone.
- ^ a b Kendle, John (26 Nov 2020). "POP / ROCK". Winnipeg Free Press. p. D2.
- ^ "Bob Mould Blue Hearts". The New Yorker.
- ^ Sculley, Alan (19 Nov 2020). "'Blue Hearts' Bob Mould". The Morning Call. p. O2.
- ^ "Bob Mould Blue Hearts Merge". The Sunday Times. Culture. 27 Sep 2020. p. 22.