| | Full Review | Ratings (992) |
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| 0.0 | jagride | October 28th 15 |
without getting into its importance, influence, yadda yadda, a prime hart and mould taking lots of drugs and pouring all their energy into a double album was a good thing. classic songs that make me feel like it's 1984 and i'm a marginalized kid living in a shitty town where young republicans in letterman jackets hold rallies to sieg heil reagan daily. not to say that the themes they dealt with here are era specific, because the feelings of rage and desperation for escape pumped into these tunes will always be relevant. doesn't quite hit me like it used to and there's some duds over the course of 70 minutes but songs like chartered trips, what's goin on and pink turns to blue cannot be denied.
1 Bumps | Bump |
| 5.0 classic | Karamazov | November 25th 12 |
A hardcore band releases a double concept album in 1984. A risky move, but they pulled it off. So many great songs, especially "Pink Turns to Blue" and "Never Talking to You". A must listen album.
1 Bumps | Bump |
| 5.0 classic | TheManMachine | August 31st 12 |
A sprawling slab of experimental punk&roll dispersed through various methods - whether it be pop song mastery, anxiety-ridden anthems, sloppy pre-grunge thrash attacks, mantras or interludes; it all adds up to a major work that is also their most determined, strung out, and idealistic. Not bad for an album full of first takes.
1 Bumps | Bump |
| 4.5 superb | BillyBrill | September 17th 22 |
Even without taking into account its influence, Zen Arcade is a testament to the success of conceptual alt rock at a major shifting point in the genre. Real bangers on this, most towering of all the immense Reoccurring Dreams, a 14 minute wall of shredding distortion, inevitably hypnotising any listener. An incredible achievement, and one of my new favourites
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| 3.5 great | davezillaMP3 | July 22nd 20 |
while its significance cannot be denied, it did not really age the best. that being said, it is not unlistenable by any means and is still quite good.
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| 4.2 excellent | Erwann S. EMERITUS | July 2nd 20 |
1984: The year alt rock broke. 1984: the year of Minutemen's Double Nickels on the Dime and Husker Du's Zen Arcade. While most tracks still retain the hardcore energy and lo-fi production the band started its career with, this is the pinnacle of the noisy, hooks-full formula they showed on In a Free Land and Metal Circus. Before Nirvana made it popular, this is the one record that first mixed pop and heavy music. The idea sounds so simple: play a pop song, shout your anger, blast the distortion. Still, don't expect Nevermind: this is a difficult record, as all trailblazers are. For every successful record you know, there's the proto version, rougher, less marketable, but more adventurous. So, yes, sometimes it's a bit of a noisy mess. But when the pop melodies start crawling their way into your head, this fucking hits.
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| 0.0 | didnt ask to be staff, was made staff anyway, then got demoted for not doing staff stuff | June 12th 20 |
I understand the cultural significance of this album and a lot of the songs are really good, but the album definitely did not age well. The production is ugly, runtime needlessly long and 60% of songs serviceable if not downright forgettable. It's a good album, but take away the timing of its release and the novelty sound, it's not that outstanding.
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| 3.5 great | IsildursBane44 | April 6th 20 |
I appreciate the influence, but I wish this was a little cleaner with the mix. Not hearing the vocals consistently drives me up the wall. (Edit): Liking this more, but the closer ruins some of the build.
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| 2.0 poor | Damus | May 14th 15 |
Just do not see what people see in this. There are a few hits, "Something I Learned Today" being one of them. Randomized piano parts. Frustratingly repetitive singing. Bad lyrics. Compared to other classic acts (Bad Brains, Minor Threat) this doesn't compare. As much as I wanted it to. Have no inclination to return for another listen.
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| 4.5 superb | TRMshadow | August 30th 13 |
Definitely enjoying this on 2nd attempt the better part of a decade later. Finding a lot more to enjoy (still can't get into Black Flag) and enjoying the production on this one a lot.
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| 4.5 superb | derho | January 19th 13 |
In 1984, hardcore had a heart-attack. "Zen Arcade" sees the Huskers spreading their arms and
experimenting in ways their contemporaries never could have imagined. And this is no mixed-
bag mushfest. From the opening slam of "Something I Learned Today" to the hurricane-swirling
chaos of "Recurring Dreams", the band provide consistently fresh performances. Side two is
hardcore at its most poetic (lyrically and musically), side three is psychedelia at its most
explosive, and side four is dumb punk at its most intelligent. The concept of the record is
easy to ignore, the story of a punk runaway trying to find himself (by the way it's all a
dream), but funneled through Bob Mould's strikingly emotional delivery, it takes new shape,
particularly in the context of Mould and drummer Grant Hart's struggles for acceptance as
gay punks in a scene knee-deep in ignorance. The dichotomy between the smart and the naieve
is painful and touching, and is reflected in the music. A bit innocent, at times, but a
truly remarkable achievement. 9.5/10
Bump |
| 4.0 excellent | JordanJMichael | October 22nd 10 |
First of all, Zen Arcade was the climax for Husker Du. The band tried everything. It's like Bob Mould and Grant Hart were battling to one up each other as the album moved from beginning to end. And, what an end. The 13-minute psychedelic wail of "Reoccurring Dreams," is just that –– a never ending fantasy of noise making bliss.
Oh, this double LP has 22 other songs to offer and not one is weak. it's a sprawl. The liner notes state that every song was recorded as a first take, except for "Something I Learned Today" and "Newest Industry" because "it started too fast," the band writes. The recording and mixing took only 85 hours, and 40 of that was mixing. Keep that in mind when you spin Zen Arcade because that alone makes the music even more unreal.
Husker Du was now, officially, a talented group. It's two previous albums and a live record were washes of pounding noise. On Zen Arcade, the three members try everything –– noisy psychedelia, pop songs, pianos, tape experiments, and acoustic numbers. It's reckless, but beautiful; righteous, but focused.
Husker Du took off after Zen Arcade and were only derailed by drug problems and major label missteps. At least the band can rest knowing that Zen Arcade started its own mini-revolution.
–– Jordan J. Michael
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| 2.5 average | Spibby | July 27th 25 |
| 4.0 excellent | chwe | November 15th 24 |
| 5.0 classic | Matty CONTRIBUTOR | September 15th 24 |
| 3.5 great | mttgry | August 12th 24 |
| 4.0 excellent | Snuron | July 21st 24 |
| 4.5 superb | Ryan P STAFF | April 18th 24 |
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| 4.0 excellent | perival | October 1st 23 |
| 4.5 superb | HalapenYo CONTRIBUTOR | June 13th 23 |
| 4.0 excellent | haley | June 4th 23 |
| 5.0 classic | random | May 29th 23 |
| 2.5 average | Gimbi | March 19th 23 |
| 4.0 excellent | Prole | January 26th 23 |
| 4.5 superb | Jerrad | July 26th 22 |
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| 4.5 superb | mongo77 | November 10th 21 |
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| 3.0 good | TOBD | March 19th 20 |
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| 5.0 classic | kloo | March 25th 18 |
| 5.0 classic | DBGKVX | February 21st 18 |
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| 2.5 average | dosia | February 24th 17 |
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| 4.5 superb | Tom R. EMERITUS | March 9th 16 |
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| 4.5 superb | EPence | August 15th 10 |
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| 2.5 average | Brad52 | June 22nd 10 |
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| 4.5 superb | yohnav | October 31st 07 |
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