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Soul Asylum is an American rock band formed in 1981 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Their 1993 hit "Runaway Train" won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song.

The band was originally called Loud Fast Rules, with a lineup consisting of Dave Pirner, Dan Murphy, Karl Mueller, and Pat Morley. They changed their name to Soul Asylum in 1983. Morley was replaced by Grant Young in 1984.

The band recorded three albums with Twin/Tone Records and two with A&M Records, with little commercial success. In 1992, they released the triple-platinum album Grave Dancers Union, featuring "Runaway Train". The band played at the inauguration of President Bill Clinton early the next year. They also scored a platinum record with the album Let Your Dim Light Shine three years later. In 1998 they recorded Candy from a Stranger. The band released four more albums over the next 15 years. Their most recent releases are Hurry Up and Wait in 2020, their twelfth studio release; and Slowly But Shirley in 2024, their thirteenth release.

Mueller was diagnosed with cancer in 2004, and the band organized a benefit concert on his behalf. Mueller died a year later.

History

Formation and early years

The group was an outgrowth of a previous band, Loud Fast Rules, formed in 1981 by drummer and lead vocalist Dave Pirner, guitarist and backing vocalist Dan Murphy, and bassist Karl Mueller. Pirner switched to rhythm guitar, and Pat Morley took over on drums.

As Loud Fast Rules, two of their songs were released on the 1982 Reflex Records cassette compilation Barefoot and Pregnant.

On the following Reflex compilation, Kitten (recorded live at Goofy's Upper Deck), they were billed as Proud Crass Fools.

Soul Asylum began performing around the Minneapolis–St. Paul area (including the First Avenue nightclub) and quickly developed a core following while becoming known for their powerful, dynamic stage shows.

Their 1984 debut album, Say What You Will... Everything Can Happen was originally released on LP and cassette by local record label Twin/Tone as a nine-song EP. It is out of print but was re-released on CD as Say What You Will, Clarence...Karl Sold the Truck, which includes five additional tracks that were cut from the original album. Between the release of Say What You Will and their second album, Grant Young joined the group, taking over the drums from Morley. In 1986, Soul Asylum released three albums: Made to Be Broken, Time's Incinerator (on cassette only) and While You Were Out.

The band toured relentlessly in its early years, opening for other American touring bands and later performing as a headliner act after gaining exposure on the "Flip Your Wig" tour with fellow Twin Cities band Hüsker Dü in early 1986. Contrasted with some of the popular underground and alternative styles at the time, audiences were struck by the band's onstage swagger, scruffy Midwestern appearance and extremely loud, frenetic sound, mixing tuneful but unrestrained punk, hardcore, 1970s rock, country and self-effacing kitsch. One early review described their sound as "some unholy mix of Kiss and Hank Williams thrown under the wheels of a runaway train." All elements contributed to the band's being described as a "grunge precursor", a claim often recited in comparisons between pre-Nirvana Minneapolis and Seattle bands. Despite critical acclaim locally and internationally, they remained unknown to a larger U.S. audience and radio market.