Post-punk band takes refuge in softer, slower sound
By ANDY SMITH
Journal-Bulletin Pop Music Writer

Soul Asylum has been through some changes since its early years as a member of the '80s Minneapolis post-punk contingent, alongside bands such as The Replacements and Husker Du.

The band has weathered some personnel changes and had its commercial breakthrough courtesy of Runaway Train , from 1992's Grave Dancer's Union album. Since then, it's released two records, 1995's Let Your Dim Light Shine and the current Candy From A Stranger .

There have been the inevitable accusations that the band has lost its scruffy rock edge -- particularly after lead singer Dave Pirner started showing up in Hollywood with actress Wynona Ryder on his arm.

And the band has, in fact, softened its sound since its '80s work on the Twin/Tone label. The new album opens with the Beatle-esque Creatures of Habit and includes the country-tinged Blood Into Wine , the rueful The Game and a more aggressive Lies of Hate .

``We don't want to make [expletive]-sounding records anymore, pounding away at 150 beats per minute,'' said bassist Karl Mueller. ``I think we're making better-sounding records now. I think we've grown as a band. There's no question that we've changed. It would be faking it if we were to go back to the old stuff.''

Soul Asylum comes to Providence today to open up a free series of concerts sponsored by radio station WBRU. The concert series will be at India Point Park in Providence. Music starts about 5:30 p.m. with opening act Guster.

Mueller, interviewed by phone from Milwaukee, said the band essentially made Candy From a Stranger twice.

The band recorded a batch of songs in late 1996. ``We sat back and listened to them, and decided it just wasn't right,'' said Mueller. ``. . . We knew we had a better album in us.''

Chief songwriter Pirner went back to the drawing board, the band chose a new producer and a new studio, and everyone started over. Mueller said about five songs from the original record made it onto the finished product, although they were re-recorded.

``It's hard to explain the difference,'' Mueller said. ``It's like eating a sandwich, and you take a bite, and you know it just isn't right. It just wasn't right.'

Along with a new album, the band has a new drummer. Sterling Campbell recorded Candy , but had since gone his own way, to be replaced by Englishman Ian Moffington.

``We knew for months that Sterling wanted to leave, so there was no surprise,'' Mueller said. ``It was time for him to go and not be in someone else's band.''

Loud fast roots

Soul Asylum started in 1981 as Loud Fast Rules -- which pretty much described their philosophy -- with Pirner, Mueller and guitarist Dan Murphy. After changing its name to Soul Asylum, the band cut two records with Husker Du's Bob Mould as producer.

Candy is the band's 11th record.

Mueller said when the band finally made the big time, with Grave Dancer's Union , they were hardly aware what was happening.

``We were opening [shows] for The Spin Doctors at the time, and someone from their band came into the dressing room and said `Hey, man, your song is doing better than ours.' I rarely opened a Billboard or Rolling Stone, so I didn't really know. I did notice that the demands on our time were greater. . . . I was sort of bemused by the whole thing.''

On the plus side, Mueller said, he did make enough money for a down payment on a house.

Grave Dancer's followup, Let Your Dim Light Shine , didn't equal the sales figures of Grave Dancer's Union .

``People say `Oooooh, it only sold a million records.' That's not a disappointment to me,'' Mueller said. ``It just didn't have that one song everyone falls in love with.''

Separate lives

Besides playing in Soul Asylum, almost everyone in the band is involved with side projects. Murphy plays with alt-country group Golden Smog. Mueller's been spinning discs (with Babes in Toyland's Lori Barbero) at a Minneapolis club. Pirner plays with an experimental band called the O'Jeez and wrote the score for the movie Chasing Amy .

The band is still based in Minneapolis, and hasn't forgotten its Midwestern roots. Last summer, Soul Asylum volunteered to play the prom in Grand Forks, N. D., which had been severely damaged by floods.


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