Although the Sell Out Young EP didn't get a lot of attention,
the Nils' first full-length album got attention on both sides of the border, gaining distribution by Profile Records, and earning high-profile fans like
Bob Mould in the process. It's not surprising, really, because
The Nils have the same ingredients that Mould-penned
Hüsker Dü numbers have in abundance: tempos are fast, and the feel is punky, but everything is dripping with melody. The fact that "River of Sadness" and "Bandito Callin'" didn't become hits outside underground radio is probably timing more than anything; the post-Nirvana world would have eaten this stuff up.