Whilst a lot of Husker Du's failures seemingly could be put down to bad luck and bad timing, Hart's drug addictions in their later days can be assumed to have played a part in their downfall (Mould, too had his own demons). By the end of their time together, their talents were so opposed that they had resorted to arguing over the number of writing credits each would be getting on the bands' final release.
Hart was the first to emerge with solo material, with 1988's '2541' single. The song title was actually the address of the former office and studio of Husker Du, and was the first of a number of public exorcisms that Hart committed to vinyl reflecting on the demise of his previous band. The debut solo album in 1989, 'Intolerance', addressed further personal grievances, as well as Hart's issues with addiction, and the suicide of former manager Dave Savoy (another catalyst for the break-up of Husker Du). A sign of Hart's previously underrated talent was evident here, not least for the fact that the album was self-produced with no other muscians involved.
1991 saw Hart forming a new band, Nova Mob (with the name taken from a William Burroughs book), and releasing single 'Admiral of the Sea' prior to the ambitious 'concept' album, 'The Last Days of Pompeii'. Despite Roman history and rock music not seeming pre-disposed to easy collaboration, the album was another triumph of insanely catchy punk-pop, and drew lyrical comparisons with the debauchery of modern society and the similar indulgences that preceded the fall of the Roman empire. Whilst touring to support the release, the band were involved in a road accident in Germany and were forced to lie low for a while.
Following line-up changes, the 'Shoot Your way To Freedom' E.P. in 1994 became the second major release for Nova Mob, receiving critical acclaim despite reputedly being a song about toilet sex.
With one more (self-titled) album receiving a less rapturous response than it's predecessor, Nova Mob split, and Hart took a break before releasing a second solo album in 1999. He also appeared as a guest musician on Patti Smith's 'Gung Ho' album released the same year.
IF YOU LIKE THESE, YOU'LL LIKE GRANT HART: Husker Du, Sugar, The Replacements, The Buzzcocks, Bob Mould, Meat Puppets, The Lemonheads, The Pixies, Buffalo Tom, Patti Smith, Television, Tom Verlaine.