In the '80s,
Soul Asylum were one of the hardest-working bands on the underground rock scene, the little-brother band of
Hüsker Dü and
the Replacements, known for their raucous but emphatic combination of punk energy, hard rock guitar firepower, and songs that ranged from angry to heartfelt. Released in 1988,
Hang Time made them cult heroes and favorites with critics, but with 1992's
Grave Dancers Union they added a bit more polish, hardened their guitar attack, wrote more anthemic choruses, and became one of the biggest acts on the alternative rock scene thanks to the singles "Runaway Train" and "Black Gold." After the multi-platinum success of
Grave Dancers Union,
Soul Asylum had trouble repeating their commercial and critical achievements, and faded out at the end of the '90s. However, the death of bassist
Karl Mueller in 2005 sparked a return to the studio and the stage, with the band soldiering on under the leadership of lead singer
Dave Pirner and releasing albums like 2012's
Delayed Reaction and 2016's
Change of Fortune.
Soul Asylum's story begins in 1981, when three friends from Minneapolis whose loyalties ran to the noisy clamor of punk, the volume and guitar power of hard rock, and the soul-bearing tales of country, decided to form a band. Guitarist Dan Murphy, bassist
Karl Mueller, and drummer
Dave Pirner began playing out as Loud Fast Rules, with Murphy and
Pirner taking turns on vocals. In 1982, the group landed two songs on a cassette-only compilation called Barefoot & Pregnant; the tape was released by Reflex Records, a local label run by
Hüsker Dü's
Bob Mould. (Another Reflex collection, Kitten, would feature live material by the group, credited to Proud Crass Fools). In 1983,
Pirner moved from drums to lead vocals and rhythm guitar, while Pat Morley took over as percussionist and the band changed their name to
Soul Asylum. In 1984, Minneapolis-based Twin/Tone Records signed
Soul Asylum, and
Bob Mould produced the group's label debut, a nine-song EP called
Say What You Will...Everything Can Happen (it was later expanded into a full-length album with the addition of session outtakes, retitled
Say What You Will, Clarence...Karl Sold the Truck).
Mould also took
Soul Asylum on the road as
Hüsker Dü toured in support of their album
Flip Your Wig in 1985, exposing the band to larger audiences outside of their hometown, and
Soul Asylum band began hitting the road with a vengeance as headliners, playing nearly any small club that would have them. The band also gained a new drummer when
Grant Young replaced the departing Pat Morley.
When
Soul Asylum returned to the studio to record 1986's
Made to Be Broken (with
Mould again producing), they were a far stronger and more powerful band, and the album won enthusiastic reviews in the alternative rock press. Another full album,
While You Were Out, was released the same year, and their relentless touring schedule was earning the band a loyal and growing audience. By this time, Twin/Tone had struck a deal with A&M Records in which the major label would distribute some of their more successful acts, and in 1988,
Soul Asylum were tapped to join the A&M roster. The band celebrated by cutting an EP for their European label,
Clam Dip & Other Delights, which parodied the cover of
Whipped Cream & Other Delights, the iconic album by A&M founder
Herb Alpert; the EP was given a belated stateside release by Twin/Tone in 1989. Shortly after completing
Clam Dip,
Soul Asylum went into the studio with producer
Lenny Kaye, and 1988's
Hang Time was arguably the group's finest album, with
Kaye's production consolidating the band's melodic strengths as
Soul Asylum delivered a set of strong, powerful performances and emotionally eloquent songs.
Hang Time fared well on college radio, and the band toured hard in support, but sales were not much better than the band had managed on Twin/Tone. A&M had greater expectations for their 1990's
And the Horse They Rode in On, produced by
Steve Jordan; however, the album, mostly recorded live on a sound stage, failed to capture the band's on-stage energy, and it was a critical and commercial fizzle. A&M soon dropped the band.
With no record deal and
Pirner dealing with hearing problems,
Soul Asylum considered breaking up, but after Murphy and
Pirner did an acoustic tour as Murphy & Pirfinkle, they began working up new material, and
Soul Asylum landed a new record deal with
Columbia. When
Grave Dancers Union arrived in the spring of 1992, the timing was perfect for
Soul Asylum; the massive success of
Nirvana's
Nevermind, which had topped the charts a few months earlier, made it easier for a band from the indie circuit to get a hearing on radio and MTV, and crunchy but melodic tunes like "Somebody to Shove" and "Black Gold" helped open doors for the band, scoring significant alternative radio airplay and MTV rotation. When the ballad "Runaway Train" was released as the album's third single, it rose to number five on the Billboard Singles charts and won a Grammy as Best Rock Song;
Grave Dancers Union went on to sell two million copies.
Having finally achieved stardom,
Soul Asylum found it was hard to hold on to. Following extensive touring in support of
Grave Dancers Union,
Grant Young was fired from the band and replaced by journeyman drummer
Sterling Campbell; it was later revealed that
Campbell had played on several tracks on
Grave Dancers Union. In 1995, the band released Let Your Dim Light Shine, which was produced by
Butch Vig; the alternative music press, who had previously championed the band, displayed little enthusiasm for the newly famous
Soul Asylum, and while the album would in time go platinum, it failed to produce a hit along the lines of "Runaway Train," and was considered a disappointment. The band returned in 1998 with
Candy from a Stranger, but the album was savaged by critics and was a flop in the marketplace.
Soul Asylum simply sounded tired, and they responded by taking a break.
Pirner released a solo album in 2002, and Murphy, who had launched
Golden Smog as a side project in 1992, devoted much of 1998 to recording and supporting the second
Golden Smog album,
Weird Tales. The band played occasional shows, but for the most part they stayed under the radar and seemed to be in no hurry to record again.
In 2004,
Soul Asylum reconvened to begin work on a new album, joined by a new drummer,
Michael Bland. But sessions came to a halt when bassist
Karl Mueller was diagnosed with throat cancer. The Minneapolis music community rallied in support, and a benefit to help with
Mueller's medical expenses made news when
Bob Mould and
Grant Hart played two songs together, making their first joint appearance since the breakup of
Hüsker Dü. However,
Mueller lost his battle with cancer on June 17, 2005, and
Soul Asylum completed their album, The Silver Lining, with help from several guest musicians, including
Tommy Stinson of
the Replacements. Columbia/Legacy released The Silver Lining in the summer of 2006; it came and went with little notice, despite a nationwide tour in support (with George Scot McKelvey on bass).
Soul Asylum was dropped by
Columbia, but in 2009, the band announced they were working on a new album, with
Tommy Stinson signing on as their official bassist.
In early 2012,
Soul Asylum signed with the independent 429 Records label, and the album
Delayed Reaction followed that July. The album was one of the group's strongest efforts in years and they toured in support, but by the end of the year, Dan Murphy announced he had left the band. Undaunted,
Dave Pirner soldiered on with a new
Soul Asylum lineup featuring Justin Sharbono on lead guitar,
Winston Roye on bass, and
Michael Bland on drums. After launching a crowdfunding campaign to finance a new recording project,
Soul Asylum completed their first post-Murphy album,
Change of Fortune, which was released by eOne Music in March 2016. The respected reissue label Omnivore Recordings offered fans a detailed look into
Soul Asylum's early days with expanded and remastered editions of 1984's
Say What You Will... and 1986's
Made to Be Broken, both released in July 2018. In April 2020,
Soul Asylum returned to action with the album Hurry Up and Wait, which introduced guitarist Ryan Smith, who joined after Justin Sharbono left the group. ~ Mark Deming