Photos & Review: Bob Mould Plays "Copper Blue," Hüsker Dü, & More in Williamsburg

Bob Mould and his band ripped through a set of songs old and new tonight at Williamsburg Park, a show that Mould and his cohorts seemed to enjoy as much as the audience did. They performed the Sugar album "Copper Blue" in its entirely to mark its 20th anniversary, then played a number of tunes from Mould's latest solo album "Silver Age" (released this week on Merge Records) with a helping of Hüsker Dü songs for good measure (see setlist added below).

Jason Narducy, Jon Wurster, and Bob Mould at Williamsburg Park.

We'll write more about the show later, [see below] but just wanted to get some photos up tonight. Suffice to say that the concert rocked, and the touring trio of Mould, Jason Narducy on bass, and Superchunk's Jon Wurster on drums are tight and put on great show.

Mould puts on a fine solo show, and I've seen him several times just accompanying himself on his Stratocaster. But many of his songs are rockers and were meant to be played by a full band. Which for Mould means a trio, since that's the configuration of Hüsker Dü, Sugar, and his current touring band.

On Friday Mould and band stormed through "Copper Blue" with minimal breaks between songs. I figured they would take an intermission after that, but following a brief chat with the audience, Mould started playing selected tunes from "Silver Age," starting with the album's opening track, "Star Machine."

After finishing the regular set, the band returned for encores, the first featuring Craig Finn of The Hold Steady singing Hüsker Dü's "Something I Learned Today." Finn was clearly psyched to be singing a Hüsker Dü song on stage with Mould; the always animated frontman was bouncing all over the stage most of the song (the photo below is the only one we got that isn't a total blur).

The show finished with another Hüsker Dü classic, "Makes No Sense At All," which often turns up in Mould's shows. After the show ended Mould stood on stage for a bit, smiling from ear to ear, soaking up the adulation.

He's said at past shows that he's surprised people still remember and want to hear his old songs, so he was clearly pleased by the enthusiastic reception "Copper Blue" got at Williamsburg, with many fans singing and pumping their fists to the lyrics. And he's no doubt happy that the crowd enjoyed the tunes from his just-released "Silver Age," his first album of all-new material since "Life and Times" (2009) and his debut on his new label, Merge.

Mould and band are just beginning the U.S. leg of their "Copper Blue"/"Silver Age" tour, with more East Coast stops coming up, then Midwest and West Coast dates. (See all the tour dates here.) If you're a fan of Bob Mould's music in any of its incarnations, you'll want to see this show.

We're hoping he'll fit in another gig in New York on this tour.

Bob Mould at Williamsburg Park, Sept. 7th - Setlist (via Setlist.fm): 
"Copper Blue":
"The Act We Act"
"A Good Idea"
"Changes"
"Helpless"
"Hoover Dam"
"The Slim"
"If I Can't Change Your Mind"
"Fortune Teller"
"Slick"
"Man on the Moon"

"Silver Age":
"Star Machine"
"The Descent"
"Round The City Square"

"Hardly Getting Over It" (Hüsker Dü)
"Could You Be The One?" (Hüsker Dü)
"I Apologize" (Hüsker Dü)
"Chartered Trips" (Hüsker Dü)
"Keep Believing" (Hüsker Dü)

Encore: 
"Something I Learned Today" (lead vocals: Craig Finn) (Hüsker Dü)
"In a Free Land" (Hüsker Dü)

Encore:
"Makes No Sense At All" (Hüsker Dü)

Guest vocalist Craig Finn.

New York's Cymbals Eat Guitars opened the show:

NYC Concert Notes: Tickets for K'Naan, Fun., David Johansen On Sale Friday

Here are links to tickets for a few upcoming concerts in New York City that are going on sale Friday, Sept. 7th. (And if you're in the New York area, a reminder that you can see Bob Mould and Cymbals Eat Guitars FREE at Williamsburg Park in Brooklyn that night.)

Some of the interesting shows going on sale Friday:

• Fun. at Irving Plaza, Tues., Oct. 30th (on sale: 12 Noon)
• K'Naan at Highline Ballroom, Thurs., Nov. 1st (on sale: 12 Noon)
• David Johansen at Highline Ballroom with The Last Bison, Los Texmaniacs, and Eliana Burki, Sun., Jan. 13th (on sale: 12 Noon)

And for music fans in the upper Westchester area, there's good news in that the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester has reopened and has a full slate of concerts. Bob Dylan opened the new Bowery Presents venue earlier this week, and upcoming events include Buddy Guy and Jonny Lang (Sept. 9th), The Roots and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band (Sept. 14th), The J. Geils Band (Sept. 19th), and Regina Spektor and Only Son (Oct. 3rd). (See Capitol Theatre upcoming shows here.)

Although Port Chester isn't very close to me (unless I'm visiting friends in Westchester or Connecticut), it's great to see another music venue opening in the greater NYC area. For a long time in New York, you only heard about clubs closing down; it's good to hear of new ones coming online.

Stream Bob Mould's New Album; See Him Live FREE in Brooklyn on Friday

Bob Mould and band performing "The Descent" on Letterman last night (via Stereogum).

Rolling Stone is streaming Bob Mould's new album "Silver Age," and you can listen to it here. The album dropped on Sept. 4th. (RS has apparently had this up since Aug. 27th; don't know how I missed it, but the stream still works.) I got the album the other day and it definitely rocks; this isn't one of Mould's albums of quiet, introspective songs. It should be great to hear these songs live.

Speaking of which: If you're a Mould fan in the New York area, you'll want to catch his free show this Friday, Sept. 7th at the Williamsburg Park, at East River State Park (see their Facebook page). It's address is listed as 50 Kent Avenue and North 12th St.

Doors open at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, and Cymbals Eat Guitars has been added to the lineup.

As previously mentioned here, Mould and his band (Jon Wurster and Jason Narducy) will play Sugar's classic album "Copper Blue" in its entirety to mark its 20th anniversary. The concert is now being billed as "Bob Mould Plays Copper Blue and Silver Age," so you can expect to hear much of the new album. And, no doubt, some tunes from the catalog of Hüsker Dü and Mould's solo career. 

If you're a Bob Mould fan (like me) this is a great week, especially if you're in New York. In case you're not in the NYC area, Mould appears next in Washington, D.C. (Sept. 8th), Boston (the 10th), and Philadelphia (the 11th). See all Bob Mould tour dates here.