Images: Bob Mould, Mercy Music September 30, 2014 at the Bunkhouse Saloon

If we ever got around to constructing a Mount Rushmore of punk, who would you put on it? Joey Ramone and Joe Strummer are an indisputable lock. The third spot, you can give that to Hank, Milo, Ian or someone else. I’ll let you argue over that. But I’m here to nominate Bob Mould for spot number four. I’ve always been a big fan of his work, from Hüsker Dü to Sugar to his solo material, and his recent gig at the newly revamped Bunkhouse Saloon only solidified that love, with a fantastic set that spanned his career from hardcore punk to power pop to alt rock and many more in between.

But before Mould was ready to take the stage, Vegas’ own Mercy Music was ready to wow the slowly filling former dive. Frontman Brendan Scholz has always garnered much-deserved accolades for his guitar prowess, but his time playing solo and stripped from distortion brought attention to his songwriting skills. Fast forward to now, and Mercy Music is a trio featuring Scholz’s cohort Jarred Cooper on bass and Michael McGuinness on drums – and I can’t even begin to explain how great they sound live.

This night doubled as the release show for their new album, When I Die, I’m Taking You With Me, and in a fashion now classic for Scholz/Cooper collaborations, the set was bustling with kinetic energy. Cooper is one of my favorite bass players to watch live, as he always finds a way to stay perpetually in the air. This night was no different for Cooper, but I also counted at least three Brendan jumps, one of which is pictured below. Whether it was the opportunity to open for one of his influences – tracks like “Undone” and “Fine” wouldn’t feel out of place on Sugar’s Copper Blue if that album was turned up to 11 – or just the cathartic release that comes from releasing months of hard work to a crowd of friends and new fans, Brendan seemed to burst with renewed energy. Most of When I Die was played this night, with the pulsating “Painless,” which acts as the perfect showcase for McGuinness’ skillful drumming, and Lookout Records-meets-The Kinks peppiness of “Your Life Sentence” among the set’s highlights.

By the time Mercy Music’s set ended, the Bunkhouse was full, but not packed, with quite a varied audience. I was surprised to see so many out-of-towners here for the gig, but I guess like myself, these guys couldn’t pass up the chance to see a music legend in such a small venue. Bob Mould’s roots are in punk and I think Frank Turner said it best when he said “Punk rock is very, very much like Catholicism. It gets you when you’re young, you probably hate it at some point, but it never goes away. It still informs the way you see the world.” Sugar and a lot of Mould’s solo work doesn’t fall in the same SST punk rock mold as his Hüsker Dü tracks – of which “Hate Paper Doll,” “Flip Your Wig” and “I Apologize” were played to huge chirps of glee from the audience – but the similar hooks and earworm chorus not only are great songs in their own right but have clearly inspired everyone from Ted Leo to Frank Turner and every other punk that knows you don’t have to sacrifice intelligence to be catchy.

I was pleasantly surprised to find Mould’s set made up of a fairly even mix of solo material, HD tracks and Sugar songs. Drummer Jon Wurster (Superchunk/Mountain Goats) and bassist Jason Narducy were pros behind their instruments and Mould’s voice sounded great, especially when so many of his peers sound worn at this point decades into their careers. My favorite track from Mould’s latest, “I Don’t Know You Anymore,” already sounds like a classic when played between old favorites like pop punk number “The Descent” (which showcases Mould’s knack for catchy verses making way for huge choruses) and jangle pop classic “If I Can’t Change Your Mind,” which had the whole crowd singing every word.

This was Mould’s first show in Vegas since the early 90s and with all those years of anticipation, the show still exceeded every expectation I had. Despite the fact that the show surprisingly didn’t sell out, the crowd reaction was fantastic and hopefully warm enough to convince Bob to come back sometime before 2040.

-Emily Matview | https://www.flickr.com/photos/holdfastnow/