Bob Mould Announces New Album ‘Blue Hearts’ & Shares Single

Bob Mould announced a new album, Blue Hearts, set for release September 25 via Merge Records. The renowned singer-songwriter and former Hüsker Dü frontman also shared the track, “American Crisis,” with proceeds from the single benefiting OutFront Minnesota and Black Visions Collective.

“American Crisis” was originally written for Mould’s 2019 album, Sunshine Rock, but was deemed “too heavy” by the singer-songwriter himself. “American Crisis,” however, fits right in on Blue Heart’s 14 tracks, which tackle the many issues society faces today seen through the lens of the similarly tumultuous 1980s when political leaders largely tried to ignore a devastating epidemic.

“‘American Crisis’ is a tale of two times,” Mould said in a statement. “Past Time and Present Time. The parallels between 1984 and 2020 are a bit scary for me: telegenic, charismatic leaders, praised and propped up by extreme Evangelicals, either ignoring an epidemic (HIV/AIDS) or being outright deceitful about a pandemic (COVID-19).”

In 1984 Bob Mould was a self-described “22-year-old closeted gay man” as the HIV/AIDS epidemic devastated the gay community. “These fuckers tried to kill me once. They didn’t do it,” Mould continued. “They scared me. I didn’t do enough. Guess what? I’m back, and we’re back here again. And I’m not going to sit quietly this time and worry about alienating anyone.”

Watch the lyric video for Bob Mould’s “American Crisis” below: