Customer Reviews

Modulate

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

For those who have written off this album (the 18th of Bob's career), it is important to remember that Husker Du was written off after Zen Arcade by the hardcore kids and after they jumped to Warner Bros by many "purists." Bob was then written off himself by most "punks" after Workbook. The post Black Sheets of Rain Mould (particularly in Sugar) was much more like New Day rising and Flip your wig Husker Du and as such brought many of the "alternative music" crowd into the fold. However, one group has always welcomed the change and the freshness Bob brings to each project and those are music fans. While I was weaned on punk and guitar-driven rock, this album still contains all of the elements of a Bob Mould record. Great songwriting, lyrics about betrayal, confusion and ascendance and tremendous melodies. This is epitomized in the track Slay/Sway, a classic piece of Mould songwriting. Admittedly, it took me more than a few listens to get into this record, but to those who also take the time, you will be rewarded.

Paul M

I approached the new Bob Mould record with a little uneasiness. I mean, how could the genius who gave us such rocking classics like "Celebrated Summer","Makes No Sense At All","Helpless" and "Moving Trucks" go electronic? Long time fans.....don't worry. Bob has changed his sound a bit, but it's still Bob. The first couple of tracks might shock a few people, but in a good way. The trance/dance track "Sunset Safety Glass" is amazing and Bob still has that familiar yearning in his voice. "Lost Zolofit" almost sounds like a My Bloody Valentine song from Isnt Anything. Excellent track! Think Bob left out his trademark electric guitar? Don't worry, tracks like "Sound On Sound" and "Come on Strong" have that buzzsaw guitar intact, with Bobs awesome lyrics and pop sensibilites shining through. But the hands down best track on the record is "Trade". This song sounds like it was lifted from 1989's workbook except it has a danceable beat. Have no fear Bob Mould fans, "Modulate" is still Bob...but with different sounds to entrance us. Buy it!

...or not so suprisingly if you have followed Bob's work of the last decade. I'm a big Husker Du/Sugar/solo Bob Mould fan, and I have to say that Modulate far exceeded any expectations I had. On first listen I thought the album was okay, but repeated listens has brought out a lot more subtle details that really make the album better; this is an album that needs to be consistently listened to to fully appreciate it. Song highlights for me- Trade, semper fi, quasar, and slay/sway. The part that surprised me the most is how melodic his voice sounds throughout the disc, the catchy vocal lines will stick in your head for days.

Now a word about the negative comments that will (and have) inevitably spring up regarding such a big departure for a well-liked artist. It almost makes me laugh to read the reviews that not only don't give the album a chance, but are obviously written from a close-minded perspective. Listen to the radio if you want Husker Du and Sugar-like material. There's plenty of people making that kind of music derivitive of what Bob made eons ago. Don't expect Bob to join them.

OK, I admit I was expecting another of Mould's usual incredible outings of bracing, guitar-driven power-pop, and I admit that I miss that traditional post-Husker Du sound on this outing. However, as a longtime fan of everything Bob, "Modulate" (a very apt name, by the way) does have its merits. Miles Davis was equally experimental at many points in his career.
Mould has always been one to try a new sound, a new way of doing things. Whoever would have expected Husker Du to develop into the incredibly tight, melodic, hyperdrive rock unit they eventually became, after listening to "Land Speed Record"?!?
Although I don't like everything on "Modulate" by any means, I am willing to consider it another "Land Speed Record", another beginning, an offshoot in an entirely new direction. Hell, "Workbook" was pretty strange after listening to Husker Du for all those years, but I loved it. This album is not up to the same level as "Workbook", but it certainly isn't terrible, either. It's an experiment with new instruments and production methods, and I doubt very much that it will define a "new Bob Mould" that older fans will reject. I certainly am not expecting him to turn into New Order, Bjork, or Erasure (some of the most prominent influences on this album). Give the man a chance. He's been playing the same kind of guitar rock for decades now. He deserves a chance to try something else for a change. Maybe it didn't work out the way he intended, but it's good for a listen anyhow.

new direction - same old bob, same old angst and brilliance that keeps him focused on inspiring the rest of us in a punk way to 'flip our wig' (the album of the same name) - techno now to keep with the times!

Bob Mould is Back! Yes, this CD is different but we were warned and asked by Bob to keep an open mind and to go along for the ride. As a Long time Husker/Bob Solo/Sugar/Bob Solo Fan, I approached Modulate for the first time with much excitement and apprehension. After the first listen there was definately enough of Bob's style, that we grew to love, on this CD that pushed me to listen to it over and over again. To be honest the more I listen to it the more I appreciate and enjoy the sounds and artistry Bob has added to his music. Songs like "Slay/Sway", "The Recepient", "Sound on Sound" and "Come on Strong" will satisfy your cravings for Bob's classic sound. "Quasar" and "Lost Zoloft" and "Semper Fi" will introduce you to Bob's new sound. Really, the only song that I have trouble with sound of is "Sunset Safety Glass". I feel lucky to be a fan of an Artist like Bob, that has now taken us on a journey through a wide spectrum of music, keeping things fresh along the way. I for one look forward to the next two releases of the trilogy of new Cd's from Bob this year! Long time fans, I recommend Modulate and say just relax and enjoy the new work of our friend. First time buyers, I recommend Modulate...but do not judge Bob Mould only on this one effort, sample his whole body of work and you will wish you had been a long time fan of this truely talented artist.

No disrespect to the folk who have given this album negative reviews - everyone's entitled to their opinion, after all - but I find the blinkered indie purism displayed by some of the more conservative elements of Mould's fanbase a tad puzzling, to say the least. As the previous reviewer notes, Mould's career has for the most part been distinguished by constant re-evaluation, and his best music has usually been produced whilst under the influence of a powerful drive to evolve artistically.

For me, "Modulate" is his best album in ages, as his last three ("The Last Dog & Pony Show", "Bob Mould", and Sugar's "File Under Easy Listening" - the last of which we can hold responsible for the unfortunate rise to fame of Dave Grohl's Foo Fighters) trod water and repeated an increasingly worn-out formula with diminishing returns. Not only have Mould's experiments with electronic instrumentation given his songwriting a new context in which to flourish, the songs themselves are his strongest in years - particular standouts being "The Receipt", "Sound on Sound", "Come On Strong", "Trade" and "Quasar". Surely artistic stagnation, not electronica, is the real enemy for any artist of Mould's calibre.

I can see no reason why Huskers / Sugar fans who listen to "Modulate" with an open mind can't find plenty to enjoy here.
Oh, and one more question for those voyeurs who enjoy speculating about band politics - are "The Receipt"'s lyrics about Grant Hart or what?

Having been a Bob Mould fan since the early Husker Du years, I've come to the conclusion that Bob reinvents himself about every 10-11 years or so. After Husker Du, he confounded his followers with his acoustic-loaded "Workbook" CD. Now, about 10 years later, after being considerably vocal about feeling musically stagnant, fed up with the 'system' and all, he's come up with another dramatic departure that mixes both electronica and fuzz-buzz guitarwork with his always classic lyrics. The familiar Bob Mould vocal growl, cynical lyrics and guitar are alive and well on songs like "The Receipt" and "Sound on Sound", but there are also excellent, electronica-tinged songs like "Trade", "Sunset Safety Glass", and "Lost Zoloft" which are gems! I'm liking this new material as much,if not more than the Last Dog and Pony Show....but honestly, I'm still partial to my favorites, which are Black Sheets of Rain, Hubcap and the first Sugar 2 CDs.

It's been 4 years since Bob Mould released a record, and a lot has happened in that time. Modulate is definitely a new direction he's taking, and it may come as a surprise to a lot of fans. He's experimenting with electronic loops and tracking, but still present is the loud guitar sound which he pioneered in the 1980's with Husker Du and in the 1990's with Sugar. The best results are the straightforward "Sound on Sound", the melancholy buzz of "Lost Zoloft" and the sweetness of "Trade". He expands on the direction he took with the song "Egoverride" from 1996 but adds a different dimension. Repeated listenings to this CD will reward even the die-hard fans. I've had this CD for a while and can say that it has grown a LOT on me. Beware of the people that are quick to judge Bob's new direction. A quick listen to "Sound on Sound" and "Slay/Sway" at high volume should convince even the most skeptical. The coming tour should also NOT be missed.

"Departure" is a common word to use when describing an artist who severely strays from his or her normal sound. It's also a somewhat overused term. In the case of Bob Mould's "Modulate" CD, however, the word departure is almost an understatement. This CD is nearly as different from 1992's Copper Blue as Kylie Minogue is to Guns n' Roses. (OK, perhaps that's an exaggeration; still, it is quite different from Mould's normal fare.)

"180 Rain" leads off "Modulate," a tune sprinkled with what I would label electronic fairy dust. Mould's voice is in good form -- when he's using his natural pipes. Elsewhere, "Sunset Safety Glass" comes across as generic club music, though Mould deserves credit for the solid job he did on the rest of the album's dancelike tracks. "Quasar," for instance, is a hip-sounding dance-club number that surprisingly works, and it boasts a catchy refrain that could get anyone singing.

I usually loathe it when music reviewers use the word "filler" (another overused term) to describe what they hear on CDs. Nonetheless, I can only describe several of the interludes between actual songs on this CD as filler, empty bridges of nothingness that stagnate "Modulate" a tad.

Amid the occasional lightweight noises are several classic Bob Mould moments in updated form. "Semper Fi" contains a cool chunky guitar sound behind high-pitched synth and Mould's equally high-pitched, somewhat strained voice. "Lost Zoloft" is also good stuff, a mellow, dance-worthy tune with relaxed vocals and interesting lyrics. "Slay/Sway" is classic Bob Mould, the third best song on "Modulate," and would have fit right in with the best of Sugar's work. In fact, "Slay/Sway" reminds me of some of the material from File Under: Easy Listening. Besting "Slay/Sway" is "The Receipt," which, to purposely sound like a broken record, is classic Bob Mould/Sugar work. Unfortunately, "The Receipt" is all too short at just over two minutes, before it dissolves into a whirl of synthesizer. The best tune on "Modulate" is "Comeonstrong," which boasts an ultra-catchy riff, smooth-sounding vocals and real rock `n' roll drumming.

After putting it away for months on end and coming back to it, "Modulate" is not nearly as bad (or even as much of a departure) as I initially thought. There are some great rock tracks on this CD; you just have to sift through the more ethereal stuff to get to them. My final analysis: Mould deserves a three-and-a-half star rating for "Modulate," and five solid stars for challenging his fans to the fullest.