Following the implosion of Hüsker Dü, Bob Mould harnessed the bile and rage of his inner turmoil and put out two records that positively seethed with frustration, abandonment and white-hot fury. The show I caught a few months after moving to Boston was palpable with all of these emotions and more, still one of the most emotional performances I’ve seen.
It’s hard to sustain that sort of psychic chaos for long, and when he recruited Mercyland’s bass player David Barbe and drummer Malcolm Travis (Human Sexual Response, Zulus) to create trio and call it Sugar, there was distinct change in direction, even a bit of sweetener added to the melodies.
The band didn’t last all that long, but their three years of existence produced three memorable records as well as a clutch of singles with some killer b sides. Tonight the concept of a band was clear, and while Mould’s fingerprints are all over the band’s most popular songs like “Hoover Dam,” “If I Can’t Change Your Mind,” “A Good Idea” (best Pixies rip going), etc, tonight’ set featured a bunch of those b sides where Barbe took lead vocals.
Right out of the gate Mould brought a tense energy and when he wasn’t at the mic stand singing, he would careen about the stage, manhandling his black Strat and tossing in the occasional windmill. Three songs from the barricade is the standard protocol for concert photography and one origin story is that it’s when the band looks like their best. Not saying Sugar wasn’t looking their best, but it was only in the second song when Mould’s energy was evident in rivulets of sweat. This was not a rehearsal, and anyone who’s seen him play knows he wrenches every ounce from each song.
Mould’s been playing actively since the demise of the band 31 years ago, while Barbe’s concentrated mainly on recording rather than playing and outside of a couple recordings with Zulus and The Moles, Travis has been largely absent from his drummer seat. The band’s deep into this reunion tour and there are zero signs of rust or hesitancy, the buzzing chords of Mould’s guitar meshing perfectly with the immaculate rhythm Barbe and Travis produced.
As the night came to a close, Mould took the obvious moment to give Travis a bit of the spotlight and the crowd roared its enthusiasm loud enough for those fans who decided instead to see Slapshot’s last show across town to hear.
J Robbins is no stranger to traveling with Mould; the last time I saw him play, his three piece band opened for Mould’s trio, and he’s also lent solo support on Mould’s solo tours. His musical journey also mirrors Mould’s, with early stints in a seminal hardcore band (Government Issue), a successful ’90s alt-rock/punk act (Jawbox) and records released under his name. It has to be a bit intimidating to take the expansive stage of a venue like Roadrunner all by yourself, with just a vocal mic and an acoustic guitar but Robbins was certainly up to the task.
Intense renditions of solo material (also available as a tour-only CD at the merch table) went down well as the crowd filtered into the room, and he peppered it with a new song (“Everything’s Easy”) and a classic Jawbox song (“Savory”).
