Five absolutely perfect albums from the 1980s

HUSKER DU: FLIP YOUR WIG (1985)

Flip Your Wig completed a remarkable three-album run from Bob Mould, Grant Hart, and Greg Norton, following their post-hardcore gems Zen Arcade and New Day Rising. On Flip Your Wig, they moved a little farther away from hardcore punk into more melodic rock n roll, without losing the high-octane adrenaline rush of their earlier albums.

Mould wrote and sang these newer songs that could find a spot on mainstream radio – songs like “Makes No Sense at All,” and the title track. Drummer Hart wrote and sang the throwbacks to their hardcore roots, like “Every Everything” and “Private Plane” They fit together perfectly, largely because no matter the song, Mould’s guitar created a tidal wave of listenable noise.

After Flip Your Wig, Husker Du left the legendary indie label SST for Warners, and released their final two albums which didn’t approach their run in the mid-80s. A lot of their fans attributed their fall to the move to a big, mainstream label, but the writing was already on the wall. Mould and Hart were drifting apart as musicians. It was time for them both to try something new. They could split up knowing that they had created several crucial punk albums, including at least one perfect one.