Merging the melodic but muscular sound of guitar-based indie rock with the deep, pulsating textures of electronic dance music, Blowoff is a collaboration between two eclectic but like-minded independent artists, Bob Mould and Richard Morel. Mould is best known as the singer and guitarist with melodic hardcore pioneers Hüsker Dü and indie rock powerhouse Sugar; since 1995 he's pursued a solo career that's followed a variety of musical paths. While Mould made his name with hard-edged guitar-based rock, after Sugar he developed a keen interest in electronic music, producing and releasing several electronic recordings under the moniker Loud Bomb. Mould became a fan of producer and remixer Richard Morel, who had reworked tracks for the likes of New Order, the Killers, Depeche Mode, and the Pet Shop Boys, as well as recording house-influenced sides with the Washington, D.C.-based production team Deep Dish. When Mould relocated to Washington, D.C., he and Morel began hosting a monthly dance night at the 9:30 Club called Blowoff in which the duo would spin electronic tracks alongside their new material, occasionally adding live instrumentation to the synthesized tracks. Taking their group name from the D.C. dance event that inspired the music, Blowoff's self-titled debut album gave equal time to the rock and dance facets of their collective personality. ~ Mark Deming