Bob Mould - District Line
There's not a lot to write home about District Line, though it's nothing to blemish Mould's repertoire either
District Line will be the latest of a half dozen solo albums released by Bob Mould, the former member of Hüsker Dü and Sugar. Most of the record consists of earnest alterna-rock that you could take home to the parents. There aren't a whole lot of surprises, though it's unerringly consistent and competent. The first half of the album falls somewhere between early Wilco and post-2000 Pearl Jam; not abundantly exciting, but compelling when Mould hits the mark, as in Very Temporary – a heartfelt ballad with a suitably huge chorus and catchy country-fried verse. A few tracks include tasteful synth and vocoder flourishes which reinforce the fact that it's 2008, not 1998. Shelter Me juxtaposes a quasi-house beat with insistently gurgling synths and burly vocals that echo around the mix. All in, there's not a lot to write home about District Line, though it's nothing to blemish Mould's repertoire either. [Tobias Kahn]