"Statues" is a song by
Hüsker Dü
Hüsker Dü () was an American punk rock band formed in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1979. The band's continual members were guitarist/vocalist Bob Mould, bassist/vocalist Greg Norton, and drummer/vocalist Grant Hart. They first gained notabili ...
released as a
single in 1981. It was the band's first single, b/w the song "
Amusement
Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and entertaining events or situations while the person or animal actively maintains the experience, and is associated with enjoyment, happiness, laughter and pleasure. It is an emotion with po ...
." This release finds the band in a period where its music was drifting from
punk to
post-punk
Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...
. Briony Edwards of ''
Louder'' wrote, "Though it shows an interest in experimentation that would follow the band through each stage of their career, the ...
Krautrock
Krautrock (also called , German for ) is a broad genre of experimental rock that developed in West Germany in the late 1960s and early 1970s among artists who blended elements of psychedelic rock, avant-garde composition, and electronic music, a ...
inspired,
Keith Levene
Julian Keith Levene (18 July 1957 – 11 November 2022) was an English musician who was a founding member of both the Clash and Public Image Ltd (PiL). While Levene was in PiL, their 1978 debut album '' Public Image: First Issue'' reached No 22 ...
-esque guitar is far removed from the boisterous
hardcore that followed in its wake."
The single's pressing was limited to 2,000 copies. The two tracks appear on the ''
Everything Falls Apart and More'' CD.
In 2013,
the Numero Group
The Numero Group is an archival record label that creates compilations of previously released music, reissues original albums, and creates album reconstructions from a variety of musical genres. The label, known as Numero, was founded in 2003 b ...
reissued the single with the studio outtakes "Writer's Cramp" and "Let's Go Die" as a
7" pairing in a
gatefold
A gatefold cover or gatefold LP is a form of packaging for LP records that became popular in the mid-1960s. A gatefold cover, when folded, is the same size as a standard LP cover (i.e., a 12½ inch, or 32.7 centimetre square). The larger gatef ...
jacket. The studio recordings are remastered from a first-generation
sub-master, while "Amusement" is from the original
live board tape.
Track listing
2013 reissue track listing
;Notes
*"Statues", "Writers Cramp" and "Let’s Go Die" were recorded at Blackberry Way, Minneapolis, August 1980
*"Amusement" was recorded live at Duffy's, Minneapolis, October 1980
Personnel
Adapted from the liner notes of ''
Everything Falls Apart and More''.
;Hüsker Dü
*
Bob Mould
Robert Arthur Mould (born October 16, 1960) is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar in the 1990s.
Early years
Born in Malone ...
– guitar, vocals,
*
Grant Hart
Grantzberg Vernon Hart (March 18, 1961 – September 13, 2017) was an American musician, best known as the drummer and co-songwriter for the punk rock band Hüsker Dü. After the band's breakup in 1988, he released his first solo album '' ...
– drums, vocals
*
Greg Norton – bass, vocals
; Technical
*Hüsker Dü – producer (all tracks)
*Colin Mansfield – producer ("Statues", "Writers Cramp", "Let’s Go Die"), engineer ("Amusement")
*Steve Fjelstad – engineer (all tracks)
*
Terry Katzman – recorded by ("Amusement")
*
Fake Name Graphx – artwork
References
1980 songs
Hüsker Dü songs
1980 singles
Songs written by Bob Mould
Songs written by Grant Hart
Reflex Records singles
{{1980s-song-stub