In a press release that elevates the hopes of fans before cruelly dashing them, the Numero Group has announced plans to “REISSUE HÜSKER DÜ EARLY RECORDINGS” for Record Store Day. Just the words “reissue Hüsker Dü” are enough to raise heart rates, even with the nebulous “early recordings” qualifier (Land Speed Record? The “In A Free Land” single? Oh! Oh! Everything Falls Apart?!)
Ha ha ha, no: For Record Store Day 2013, Numero is reissuing Hüsker Dü’s first single, “Amusement”/“Statues” as a double 7-inch with “Writer’s Cramp” and “Let’s Go Die,” the other two songs recorded at the same time for what was initially planned to be a self-released 10-inch. But costs forced the band to opt for the two-song 7-inch that was eventually released. “Amusement,” “Writer’s Cramp,” and “Let’s Go Die” were remastered from “a first-generation sub-master,” because the originals are long gone. “Statues” was reworked from the original recording from the board at the old Minneapolis venue Duffy’s, where it was recorded.
The double 7-inch will be limited to 4,000 copies and distributed to retailers participating in this year’s Record Store Day on April 20. Fans wanting a proper reissue of the Hüsker Dü catalog will have to keep waiting—as Bob Mould detailed in See A Little Light: The Trail Of Rage And Melody, the famously contentious band still can’t agree with each other enough to make it happen. Sigh, well here’s that newer version of “Statues”: