When I was in college in the early 1980s, I worked as a DJ at the on-campus radio station, which featured alternative rock music. Among our playlist was a punk band called "Hüsker Dü," led by singer Bob Mould. Over the next few years, I listened to Hüsker Dü and Mould's follow-up project Sugar. I continued to admire Mould's work when he launched his solo career in the 1990s.

I never saw Bob perform live until the summer of last year when he warmed up for Courtney Barnett at a music festival in Skokie, IL. Mould outshone the headliner on that evening, so I jumped at the chance to see him take top billing Saturday night at the Old Town School of Folk Music.

With a gray beard and a balding head, Bob Mould no longer looks like a punk rocker. But he still possesses frantic energy and manic guitar playing that defined the punk genre. He bounced around the stage like a man a third his age (He turns 65 next week)

His songs sound more melodic today, but they retain the thrashing guitar work that made his reputation decades ago. With barely a second between each 3-minute piece, he had little time to talk with the audience. But he stopped a couple of times to share his opinions on the state of the world, politics, religion, and gay marriage.

Few people can entertain with nothing but a guitar and their voice like Bob Mould. He did just that Saturday night.