Bob Mould

Indie-rock guitar hero Bob Mould has fared better than many of his mid-'80s peers by simply hanging under the radar and doing his own thing. The former Husker Du frontman has been scarce since disbanding Sugar, his last power trio, a decade ago. In the meantime, he's pursued some entertaining tangents, including a stint writing scripts for the World Wrestling Federation's ringside dramas and playing guitar on the movie soundtrack for Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Maybe all that time away gave him new focus on retooling aspects of his solo work: His 2002 album, Modulate, merged electronic beats and textures with his familiar chiming guitar—much as he'd begun to explore in his one-man concerts, under a spinning disco ball—but came as a curveball to fans accustomed to a more organic band sound.

Those folks will delight in Body of Song. It's still mostly a solo event, but Mould hauls in some notable guests to flesh out the soaring walls of sound. Ex-Sugar bandmate Dave Barbe drops by, as does Fugazi drummer Brendan Canty. Of course, like all Mould albums, its themes are invariable. "I've gone insane a thousand times," he sings on the opening "Circles," introduced by a somber keyboard line that vaguely recalls Nine Inch Nails' oh-so-simpatico "Hurt." "My circle of friends is shrinking down." Likewise, mid-tempo discourses "Gauze of Friendship" and "High Fidelity" lament vagabond hearts with a mixture of passion and spite. Then again, maybe things are looking up in Bobville. "(Shine Your) Light Love Hope" is a buoyant electro-inspired dance track, while the closing "Beating Heart the Prize" erupts with a classic guitar jam. Even when Mould's feeling bad, he's good.—Steve Dollar