In tragic news, Husker Du vocalist, drummer and songwriter Grant Hart has passed away aged 56 following a short battle with cancer. One of the first punk rock bands to bridge the gap between the fast hardcore of the early ‘80s and the burgeoning indie rock sound, the band’s influence and innovation was second to none. Teaming up with fellow vocalist and songwriter Bob Mould, the punk rock Lennon/McCartney equivalent would record seven full-length albums throughout the ‘80s, each marking a stark evolution in the band’s sound from the short hardcore bursts of 1982’s Land Speed Record to the carefully crafted songwriting and instrumentation of their 1987 penultimate double album Warehouse: Songs and Stories. The band’s sound and expansion of American punk rock continues to make its mark from the melodic hardcore/emo scene to the garage and indie rock scenes to come shortly after. For the uninitiated, I recommend arguably the band’s most defining record, 1984’s Zen Arcade for the full scope of their strengths and abilities, along with their 1983 EP Metal Circus. Both of these records were huge for me as a teenager, as I’m sure they were for many others and will continue to be. Rest in peace and thanks for all the songs Grant.
Melodic hardcore rockers Direct Hit! and Pears have announced the upcoming release of a split album. Entitled Human Movement, the record will contain four new tracks from each band plus each band doing a cover of one of the other’s songs. Brian Petus from Pears explained the release of the record, “We’ve been talking about doing this for a long time, since one of our first tours, which was with Direct Hit!. It’s pretty surreal that we finally got to make it happen, and I couldn’t be happier with how both sides of this thing turned out.” Human Movement is due out Thursday November 30 on Fat Wreck Chords.
New York punk rockers Iron Chic have announced the upcoming release of their third full-length. Entitled You Can’t Stay Here, the record will follow up 2013’s solid The Constant One. Due out on SideOneDummy on Friday October 13, the band has released the lead single My Best Friend is a Nihilist available for streaming now. The band was last in Australia in 2014 appearing at Poison City Weekender.
Orgcore emo rockers The Hard Aches have announced a national tour this October, primarily focusing on regional and rural dates around the country. The shows will see the band reportedly road-testing tracks from their as-yet-untitled 2018 record. While there’s no inner-city Melbourne show announced, the band will play on the edge of town in Belgrave on Friday October 13, Frankston on Saturday October 14, and Geelong on Friday October 27. Tickets are on sale now.
Punk rock trailblazers The Damned have announced they’ll be recording a new album. As-yet-untitled, the new record will follow up 2008’s So, Who’s Paranoid. The band has reported that bass player Stu West has left the band and will be replaced by former bassist Paul Gray, who featured on the band’s albums Strawberries and The Black Album.
