Why is Hüsker Dü’s New Day Rising on my best 1,000 albums ever list?
Listen to this on a battered cassette player for maximum effect.
What does Hüsker Dü’s New Day Rising mean to me? What does it make me feel? Why is it exciting or compelling?
“The Girl Who Lives On Heaven Hill” isn’t just the kind of song that gets stuck in my head for weeks at a time: it is a song that gets stuck in my head for weeks at a time.
The review of New Day Rising on All Music does a great job of calling out, “…the razor-thin production and waves of noise mean that it takes a little bit of effort to pick out the melodies” on this record.
It’s a reason why bands like Hüsker Dü – and the same goes for the likes of Sonic Youth and Pavement – will remain inaccessible for many: adjusting to that “wave of noise” can take a little practice, but then all of the sudden it becomes essential.
And with the best Hüsker Dü songs, and “The Girl Who Lives On Heaven Hill” is my all-time favorite at the moment, the wave of noise meshes with its pop sensibilities, fusing together into a uniquely addictive sound that’s a powerful mix of hardcore punk, indie/college rock, and pop. That’s also partially why I semi-jokingly think that New Day Rising takes maximum effect if you play it on a battered cassette player or on the tape player of a similarly battered but (somehow) still running car.
“If I Told You” is the perfect mix of Rancid and R.E.M. If you know me personally – and a goal of this best 1,000 albums ever project is invitation to get to know me better in many ways, really – you’ll know that that statement is a) a great compliment and b) something that I took great pleasure in coming up with.
At a tight 1:33, “Whatcha Drinkin’” leans into the band’s pure punk sensibilities, and quite effectively so.
Pop culture stuff that’s somehow related to Hüsker Dü’s New Day Rising
See also: Hüsker Dü – Zen Arcade: #947 of best 1,000 albums ever!
Some stats & info about Hüsker Dü – New Day Rising
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Alternative Rock, Punk Rock, New Wave, College Rock, Indie Rock, Hardcore Punk
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – #428
- All Music’s rating – 5 out of 5 stars
- When was New Day Rising released? 1985
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #771 out of 1,000
Hüsker Dü’s New Day Rising on Spotify
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.