Warehouse: Songs And Stories

Too long with too many similar songs

The big problem with this album is that it has no identity. It never decides what it wants to be. Is it punk, post punk, or some kind of pop punk? It sits in the middle of all of them and ends up sounding like none. The result is boring and repetitive. Song after song follows the same pattern without any real shift in energy or idea. The band plays hard and fast, but the material itself feels tired. There is no sharp edge and no clear personality holding the record together. What should feel urgent just turns into a long, samey blur. The production does not help. It sounds thin and flat, almost like the life was drained out of the performances. Everything is audible, yet nothing hits with any real power. The whole album ends up sounding weak and lifeless. Warehouse: Songs and Stories is a clear miss. Directionless, repetitive, and hard to sit through.

When I got into alternative rock as a kid, Husker Du had disbanded, and though I was familiar with Bob Gould's solo work and second band Sugar, I've never really known their music. Being my first foray, I really enjoyed this album... however... A consistently strong double album is a unicorn that many bands chase and very few accomplish. This could have been a really strong single album... this hovers between 3-4. Standout tracks for me would be She Floated Away, Could You Be the One? and Turn it Around.

While this has some styles I don’t enjoy all that much, many of these tracks were fun and well-executed at first. While I don’t think the quality dipped tremendously, it felt too repetitive for me and became quite a tiring listen pretty early on. 1 listen Favorite Track: Ice Cold Ice

Not my favorite genre and initially quite turned off by the sound and quality. Not enough variability between the songs and within the songs. And 20 of them?! Warmed up to this some on second playthrough.

Halt 70min 0815 Pop-Punk

I’m a big fan of Bob Mould and his projects, obviously Husker Du included there. This is a good, not great, Husker Du album. Never bad, never reaching the heights other works by him do. Very consistent, few standout tracks. A bit too long. If you cut this to ten tracks and a tight 35ish minutes it’d be better.

music is love

Fine to pretty good. Too many songs on here. Enough were good enough to barely get this album a four from me. Although that is probably my Bob Mould bias speaking. I’m a fan of a lot of his work. Although I was surprised to see this album and not HD’s others like Zen Arcade or New Day Rising.

Husker Du is a band I’ve had trouble getting into for some reason, I like a lot of other bands like them. And I really enjoyed this, but it was too long. Otherwise would definitely be a 4.

Bob Mould is a legend. I really liked this album, as I like a lot of the stuff he’s involved in. You could probably mine a 5 star album out of this, but it didn’t sustain it for the entire time.

Could you be the one is a tremendously exciting song. Nothing else matches up to this but floats along in a jangly pleasant enough way

Actually found this a bit of a chore

Very reminiscent of early REM but the songs aren't as good and the singer sounds terrible, like a budget Stipe.

After getting a few great albums, I'm bound to get one that's less good. There are 20 songs on "Warehouse: Songs and Stories". I would've shortened it to 14 tracks. Only 20 percent of "Warehouse: Songs and Stories" is truly spectacular. The best song is "No Reservations". 3 stars for "Warehouse: Songs and Stories".

actually really solid

More like Husker Don't. Generic punk and you'd think in a double album at least one song would be interesting. Nope.

Meh.

Kül!, tänkte jäg när jäg hörde förstä rïvïga rïffen. Trïst och enförmïgt, tänkte jäg 1 tïmme senäre. Tÿp söm ätt skrïvä den här recensïönen.

Kasst och långt, en dålig kombo.

Tråkigt att Hüsker Dü-albumet som är med är när Hüsker Dü blivit dåliga.

Näe

Crucially basic. Igen, det är inte dåligt men det här ska vara topp 1000 någonsin!

I rather enjoyed this one. It’s like a way less sucky REM.

It's decent....felt kinda long.

I heard of them but I guess I always thought they were some weird European band. Very much in the REM or soul asylum genre. Cool little record.

It left almost no impression the first time I listen to it, but on a second listen I liked it a lot. I don’t think the songs are varied enough for a double album and the production makes everything sound fuzzy. I don’t know if that’s deliberate but if it is, it isn’t to my taste. I get the REM comparisons, I think a lot of that comes from the vocals. The lack of variation made it difficult to pick a favourite and least favourite, even as I was enjoying it, it kept becoming background noise to me. This is the second album in a row we’ve had where fans of the band have mentioned in their reviews that the listed album is not a good entry point to the band, so it does make me want to seek out some of their other albums. Stuck between a 3 and a 4 for this one, but I’m leaning 3 because of how little impression it initially made on me. Maybe a few more listens would lift that. Fav song: She Floated Away Least fav: You’re A Soldier

Why is the music so much louder than the singing on some songs? What is this production?? Their review in the rolling stone album guide calls them "easily the ugliest, worst dressed rock band of all time" and says the songs on this album sounded like mushy love songs to their fans and sloppy guitar noise to everyone else- a failed attempt to try to make it mainstream. I fall into the sloppy guitar side of things. And I don't really like Hart's voice so half the songs are immediate nos. Favourite song: Ice cold ice Least: Charity, Chastity, Prudence, and Hope

Like all Bob Mould albums, a couple of the songs hit that sweet pop hook. But the others don’t quite achieve it.

I was surprised by this one. I hadn't heard much Husker Du before but this was very much My Shit. High 4 stars.

I really enjoyed this. It has a great energy about it, and I like the sound that these guys came up with. I'm not convinced by the whole double album thing, but it was an enjoyable way to spend an hour

I don't know man. It was just dull. Nothing to say about it.

This really does just sound like a bad rip-off of REM. That being said, I feel like there might have been individual tracks that I could have enjoyed, the issue was that the album went on forever and most of it sounded pretty much the same. The vocals sound like a bad, out-of-tune Stipe impression. A lot of the time they're somewhat buried in the music to the point where they're not all that intelligible, and then the bits you can hear properly are just really repetitive. Not a fan.

Yeah its proto indie/alt. Can be framed as good and influential but ultimately this album is a one trick pony that sounds a lot like REM and the Tragically Hip. So perhaps this is a dud in the discography? Has some charming britpop adjacent rock elements which faired well with me in the latter half of the album.

It's ok

Always preferred their hardcore days but listening to this I suddenly got what REM wanted to be. Some really cracking vocal melodies here.

Most of the album is just okay, but I did like, "Turn It Around". Last song, "You Can Live At Home" seemed to go on forever...ugh!

This is like the 4th best Husker Du album why is this the one that made it on here

10/7/26. Meh. Found it repetitive and boring, didn't stand out to me in any significant way.

It was okay, like bolder and brasher REO Speedwagon

3.2/5 not my favorite husker more poppy

They have a very listenable sound to them. Even with a large number of songs it never got boring.

Ok 2/5

At first I was really worried about the length of this album when the first songs started. The guitars screech and the drums are so synthetic 80s sounding I was amazed this is considered punk. After a few songs I kind of locked in and it became more enjoyable, the bass lines, the songs in general, the vocals, were more enjoyable and different for a normal punk album. The harmonies and melodies were enjoyable once you get past the production. Could be amazing with the right production but I suppose that’s what makes it special

The audio on this sounds off and flat. It’s reminding me a bit of a muted REM album. Boring and far too long.

This is a good album, but it feels splintered and more like a compilation. After reading the wiki page, it is obvious that it is because of the two primary songwriters fighting and treating their own songs as separate from the others. Overall, there are good songs, but I don't think it deserves a place on this list, especially not compare to other albums by Husker Du, let alone many other bands not represented on the list. I'd give it 3.5 stars.

I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would Some proper bops on this. You can hear the influence that they've had on god knows how many bands that have come since they were about

The record played more like a collection of songs than a cohesive record. Definitely a huge influence on pop-punk and alt-rock of the 90s. The melodic, catchy verses and hooks were enjoyable.

I love Hüsker Dü and this album was part of what I consider my important years and has a dear place in my heart. Is it too long? Yes. Is it perfect? No. But I can overlook both of these since this is their swan song/album. My favorites are These Important Years, Could You Be The One?, Ice Cold Ice, She Floated Away and You Can Live at Home.

larguísimo

Did not du it for me. Tracks repetitive, almost like they’ve given up.

Heard Before? Yes. Not a huge fan, but I've heard all their albums. Notes: - this is the closest i come to enjoying the sound of a Hüsker Dü album. the guitar tone is still awful, but everything else is great. - the mallet percussion on several songs makes me smile. - the biggest conflict i feel is that Bob Mould is the better singer, but Grant Hart is the more interesting songwriter. - this is just as long as Zen Arcade, but feels both tighter and more varied. Verdict: I believe this is the exact cultural moment where "alternative rock" was born. Great album but mixed legacy. Listen Again? Three times today is enough, but I'm going to revisit Flip Your Wig soon.

Prefer zen arcade and Sugar

They’ve really toned down their hardcore roots on this one and at times it sounds like Murmur-era REM. Overall there are a lot of good tracks here but not enough variety to sustain the run time. Zen Arcade should really have been the pick for the book.

Never listened. Expectations: Mid - Verdict: Good - I don't mind the Hüsker Dü that I've heard but it isn't a favourite of mine either. I find the accessible punk sound a little safe and bland. The songwriting can be good though and the opener here clearly has some great melodies. I quite like the second track as well. Standing In The Rain sounds a lot like R.E.M. and Ice Cold Ice is a good song. The run of songs after this is lot weaker until we get to She Floated Away which I enjoy. Tell You Why Tomorrow has great riffs and an almost doomy chorus. The album peters out with some uninspired tracks. I enjoyed parts of this record a lot more than I thought I would but other parts really didn't do anything for me. A good album though.

I enjoyed this one way more than I was expecting, and more than the other two, more famous, Hüsker Dü albums I have heard. Maybe it's because it's less Hardcore-y and Alt Rock and Power Pop than the others, maybe it's because it's more varied. Or maybe I just like the cover art more with all its pretty colors. Key tracks: She Floated Away

Despite being the weakest Hüsker Dü album, Warehouse: Songs and Stories is still a great time. The songwriting is still good, albeit a little repetitive from time to time. Bob Mould and Grant Hart sound great, especially When they’re harmonizing together. Even at their worst Hüsker Dü are better than most bands.

An influential band in a genre that's already fighting for last place in my rankings. The vocals and sheer length of the album stood out as particularly bad.

Very much stuck in 1993. Lots of loud farr noises on this album.

Love Hüsker Dü but not this particular album.

Nothing necessarily bad about it. I just found it incredible boring. It was too long and too much of the same. 2.5/5

A classic melodic exalt offering from Bob Mould. This was worthy of a re-discovery.

Rating: 4.6/5 Short Review: Loud, melodic, messy, and emotional. Hüsker Dü have that great combination where everything sounds like it’s barely holding together, but underneath the distortion are genuinely beautiful pop songs. A little long, but the energy carries it. Favorite Track: Could You Be the One?

Listened before?: nope These Important Years - 4/5 Charity, Chastity, Prudence, and Hope - 3/5 Standing in the Rain - 4/5 Back From Somewhere - 3/5 Ice Cold Ice - 5/5 You're a Soldier - 3/5 Could You Be the One? - 4/5 Too Much Spice - 4/5 Friend, You've Got to Fall - 3/5 Visionary - 3/5 She Floated Away - 4/5 Bed of Nails - 3/5 Tell You Why Tomorrow - 3/5 It's Not Peculiar - 2/5 Actual Condition - 1/5 No Reservations - 2/5 Turn It Around - 2/5 She's a Woman (And Now He Is a Man) - 3/5 Up in the Air - 4/5 You Can Live at Home - 4/5 Average score: 3.2/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ while i haven't finished listening to their Zen Arcade album yet, i've heard enough tracks off of it to know what they sound like at their peak. unfortunately, there's very little on this album that i can say compares to that sound. in fact, i'd argue this really sucks in comparison despite what my rating would show i believe Hüsker Dü deserves to land somewhere on this list, but definitely not this album. Zen Arcade would've been the perfect choice as it's widely regarded as their best. choosing to highlight Warehouse over literally anything else in their discography felt like a missed opportunity to showcase how good this group is

I often have to ask myself, when listening to these albums, am I trying to listen without bringing in my own biases or am I just judging whether I like it or not? All of the music that I listened to while growing up wouldn’t have existed without Husker Du. I loved this album. Is it the height of musical expression? No! The mixing leaves a lot to be desired too. But dammit I love this music.

"There’s no end to the over-treated, under-treated, and shamefully missing artists on this list, but of the bands I know well Husker Du is the most ignorantly mishandled. They went on a well-understood journey from veryhardcore to hardish alt pop rock. (By the time of their first recording of any kind, they were already slowing down.) At every stage they were good to great, their influence was big, and they are beloved heroes of USA independent music. If you’re going to cover such a band economically, you can choose the best one (New Day Rising), or the successful ambitious one (Zen Arcade), or a good transitional one (Flip Your Wig). What you shouldn’t do is select the bloated, monotonous one at the end when the band is basically over. All of the above is Google-able. Somehow the Curator lucked into Let It Be for The Replacements, but he face-planted here."

Five stars so you listen to Flip Your Wig.

Not my favorite, but still great.

The only rationale I can think of for choosing this album for the list is that it's the longest. Personally, I'd probably go with New Day Rising or Flip Your Wig, although the hardcore (in all senses) fans would pick Zen Arcade. Like most double albums, this is too long, and it's not hard to come up with about 10 songs that could go. Also, in keeping with my tradition of seeing the tour for any band's worst album, I saw this show (in which they played the entire album in order, never a great idea) in Hartford with a screaming migraine. Ergo, I never listen to this album, much as I love Hüsker Dü. (I always liked Grant Hart's songs better than Bob Mould's, and although none of his greatest are on here, Actual Condition and You're A Soldier are pretty good.) However, I have to give it a 5 on principle, and to raise the dismal average here. They are an essential band; listen to New Day Rising.

8 / 10

I was gonna make a needlessly long joke about how this is the fourth album people think of when they think Hüsker Dü but it was about as funny as this album is interesting, which is to say not at all. The drummer plays the exact same part for the hour runtime and every song is about as bland as the one before it. She Floated Away is this album's one and only saving grace but it doesn't save it from sounding like a former punk band trying and failing to hold itself together.

This was a great album and had many really good songs, though there were a couple that almost sounded like filler a little. They remind me a little of REM. Really enjoyed listening to this album.

As a self-proclaimed Hüsker Dü afficionado, I feel qualified to say that this isn't the album of theirs that belongs on this list. That honor should go to "Zen Arcade". A sensible compromise would be to substitute a Hüsker Dü album that bridges their early Hardcore sound with the later, more Pop-sensible records. Let's go with either "New Day Rising" or "Candy Apple Grey". In any case, I'm just glad they're here. Hate to do it, but I have to take back a half-star for the ill-advised glockenspiel on "Charity, Chastity, Prudence and Hope". I've never understood why it's there. And while we're here... can we take one of those unnecessary Elvis Costello albums and swap it for Bob Mould's outstanding solo debut, "Workbook"? It's a quieter, more introspective collection and you should definitely listen to it before you die.

Did not enjoy his too much

Really boring. No distinguishing songs, no underlying thoughts, no reason for it to be as long. And please don't use the "ü" - you have no idea how ridiculous it looks and sounds, when read by a Dane 1.6

I dunno if it's the volume I've heard this album but it didn't do anything for me.

This is the worst album I have ever heard. It’s everything I hate about REM (the vocals and the most generic songs) but times one thousand. You can’t get much worse than this There is one positive thing though, it made me laugh. It’s so bad, you just have to laugh. Thank you for the laughs Husky Doo Doo

Extremely boring

Boo Mould at his finest!

Have always enjoyed Zen Arcade but hadn't ever checked this out. So glad I did! Excellent songs and melodies whilst still being heavy. Will have this on for a while i think!

Good straightforward rock and roll. Can hear so many other bands in here, but REM and the Afghan Whigs in particular. Had a fraternity brother who was so very into Bob Mould -- especially in his Sugar days. The more I learn about Bob, the less surprised I am that my old friend came out to me as an adult. I can see where a closeted gay rock guy would find some real inspiration from Mould. Unfortunately, he also eventually came out as MAGA, so we're no longer friends.

I don't understand a lot about punk music, but this album to me is a great staple of 80s us punk music. It got influences such as late 70s/early 80s hard rock, bluegrass and surf rock. Even though is overly long, it still has a lot of energy and good moments.

Don't mind if I Du

I had never knowingly listened to Husker Du, and assumed they were proto-punk garage rock. Like old Iggy Pop maybe? Turns out they're way less interesting than that, and sound more like REM than Iggy. I'll be returning to my previous mode of never listening to them.

I’m a huge fan of Bob Mould and this album felt like returning to my indie boy roots. But it is too long. There isn’t enough variety to support a double album and this is sufficient for me to knock it down to a 4/5.

Having never listened to Hüsker Dü, I expected something more heavy and maybe hardcore. It’s possible I’m confusing them with the Mongolian metal band The Hu. Instead, I was served elements of REM, Elvis Costello, and even the Rembrandts (kept waiting for them to break into the Friends theme song for some reason). Not bad at all, just ran a little long and many of the songs were a bit sameysamesame. Anyways check out The Hu, they’re great.

This is one of the finest jangle-rock and punky proto-grunge albums I have heard. I really enjoyed it and this is after a night hosting karaoke until way late at my bar. I have a noise headache, my senses are saturated, I'm tired. Still, I'll be listening to this again. It isn't perfect but it's a strong 4.

2/3

Honestly, this album made me feel absolutely nothing. It's a little long and samey, but I didn't like or dislike anything about it. Just very bland and generic.

This list seems to have a thing about albums recorded by bands on the brink of splitting up, where the members have fallen out with each other and the resultant creative tension feeding into the music. I’m not so keen myself. I’d rather hear people having a good time and sparking off each other to produce something fun. In the case of Hüsker Dü they went from a hardcore early 80s punk band into something a bit more nuanced with a run of critically acclaimed and thoroughly enjoyable albums. By this album though, Bob Mould had had enough of drummer Grant Hart’s drug use leading to them writing songs separately for this double album and there’s a feeling of tying up loose ends, knowing that the end was near. The final result is perfectly fine, but it feels padded out and it’s just not the best Hüsker Dü album, making this an odd choice. Listen to Candy Apple Grey and then move on to Bob Mould’s next project Sugar, but put this one in the pile for completists and historical interest.

As someone unfamiliar with this band, this record is initially full of pretty exciting, driving alt-rock before tapering off into discordant samey-ness pretty quickly. It makes me want to listen to more Hüsker Dü but not more of this particular album.

My first Husker Du lp. Holds up incredibly well. 4.5/5.

Was expecting metal with a name like that. Seems like they get compared to REM a lot which makes sense but they don't really have the pop sensibilities. Or, at least they have one pop sensibility and they do that for 20 tracks at an hour and 9 minutes. Wanted this to be really good, just a lot of filler to me.

this has to be one of the largest question marks in the list so far. anyone pretending this record is better than Zen Arcade or New Day Rising? I don’t think so. they have some fine songs on here, but nothing hits the heights of the previously mentioned albums. generally speaking I prefer Hart’s contributions here over Mould’s. for the most part it’s like a poppier, less interesting version of Hüsker Dü.

Good, catchy stuff with a whole lot of fuzz on it. Yeah, it’s not Zen Arcade, but the melodic and noisy tendencies are still a force here.

Don’t like their voices

I'm a little upset the generator decided to give me the last Husker Du album before any of their previous efforts. I feel like I'm heading into this without context, with only the knowledge that they ended more experimental or alternative to their original supposed punk rock sound. What can I say, if I were ever in the mood for this genre I think I'd look towards R.E.M first, and that never happens, so it's not really built for me. It also feels excessively lengthy, but that's the appeal of a double album, and hey, maybe they had enough following for it to make sense. I'm not even halfway through the album as I write this, and I kind of wish it was shorter just because it's turning into more of a chore than an experience. It was indeed a chore to listen to the full project. I let the album replay just to feel submerged in the music as I write this. I don't hate it on a personal level, I just feel it a bit annoying, definitely a precursor to the 90s rock sound, without the polish that sometimes helps the 90s rock sound feel like its own era. I'll never listen to this one again, and low key hope I don't have to hear more from them. 2/5

Honey-fizz oozing into your ear, sideways. While a tornado blazes. 4/5

A Band's Band. An influence on so many that shaped the sound of the 90s.

This is my introduction to Husker Du. A common comment in the reviews says this is their worst album. I think a very good album was buried somewhere here in a bunch of bloat. If this is them at their worst, I’m interested in exploring their discography.