Copper Blue – Christopher Thelen

Copper Blue
Rykodisc Records, 1992
Reviewed by Christopher Thelen
Published on Mar 5, 1997

After the demise of the Minneapolis punk band Husker Du, lead
vocalist/guitarist Bob Mould went out and proved that he was a
serious musician with his two solo albums – never the mind he had
started to prove this near the end of Husker Du’s career.

With the formation of his power trio Sugar, it almost seemed
like Mould wanted to merge his new style with the power he gave up
with Husker Du. Their debut,
Copper Blue, has some very good moments, but like many first
attempts, it falls flat more often than not.

Punk this is not – this is more power pop than anything. The
first song, “The Act We Act,” is proof of this. The solid drum work
of Malcolm Travis and subtle bass work of David Barbe seem to be
perfect foils for the angry, jangling guitar of Mould.

But the tide turns with “A Good Idea,” a song which doesn’t seem
to jell very well. The chorus grows annoying quickly, and is not
one of Mould’s better moments as a songwriter.

The first “single” of note, “Helpless,” is one of the band’s
best songs – a catchy refrain and vocals in perfect harmony.
This sounds like what Mould was trying to accomplish after
Husker Du.

The success continues with songs like “Hoover Dam,” “Man On The
Moon,” and the alternative radio hit “If I Can’t Change Your Mind”
– the album’s shining jewel. I have listened to that song more
times than I’d like to admit when I was down.

But a successful album is made up of more than four songs, and
Copper Blue is just not able to maintain the level of
perfection these tracks set up. They’re not bad songs, but tracks
like “Changes” and “The Slim” just fail to go anywhere.

This may be unfair criticism for a band that had not been
together for a long time prior to the recording of
Copper Blue, but these are no newcomers to the recording
studio. Mould knows what makes a good song, and he misses the mark
on many of these – though he does come close.

Copper Blue has some very solid moments, but in the end, it
is a record that could have benefited from another coat of paint
and some more work on the songwriting. There is enough material
that justifies picking this one up – but approach it with
caution.

Rating: B-

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