The Replacements at Riot Fest Toronto

The Replacements at Riot Fest Toronto

 

Everything you wanted, they were.

So says our friend and Toronto musician Christian D. Christian saw the recently-reunited Replacements play at the Toronto Riot Fest date, and with all the debate flying around on whether the Replacements should reunite (spoiler alert: Too late! They already did), Christian wanted to get his take on things down into words, and he kindly let us post his thoughts.

 

 


Watch this video on YouTube

 

I’m betting that, like me, a lot of the audience at Toronto’s Riot Fest, never got to see the Mats the first time around. For me, it wasn’t so much about “was it worth the wait”, but rather a chance to see what might have/should have been. Based on those songs, the critical accolades, and the snotty punk attitude, it always seemed like the Replacements should have been goddamned huge. “Best band of the ‘80s”, remember that? Maybe they were ahead of their time or too fucked up to play the game – whatever it was, it never really happened for them.

BUT – the legacy looms large. I grew … Continue reading

Friday Link Session

  • Some recommended listening over at Daytrotter coming from: former Soul Coughing lead man Mike Doughty, the Builders and the Butchers, Wildlife – a live recording from the Barnstormer 5 tour, and one of my favorite live bands (and Barnstormer 5 alumni) Hacienda
  • There’s an interesting interview with Joe Strummer at Dangerous Minds that makes a nice companion to our Latino Rockabilly War post.
  • Someone has posted the entirety of Faith No More’s 1990 concert film Live at Brixton Academy, which your friendly blogger had a on VHS about 20 years ago.
  • While you’re out strolling the internet, check out the facelift given to our friend Nate Burrell’s site, Before the Blink. There are great shots of everyone from Pokey LaFarge and The South City Three to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and a lot of favorites in between like the Black Keys, Patrick Sweany, mr. Gnome, and Shivering Timbers. (Yes, those last four artists are all Ohioans. Shush.)

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Bits: Strand of Oaks, Murder by Death/The Builders and the Butchers, Rome, The Due Diligence, Hell and Half of Georgia

  • Strand of Oaks has made the demos to Pope Killdragon available as a free download on Bandcamp.
  • Murder by Death and the Builders and the Butchers are releasing a split 7″ on which MBD will cover TBATB and vice versa (and Ray Rude will cover both with his Mission Operation project). Murder by Death is having a contest wherein two artists can win all 5 MBD albums on vinyl, all 3 TBATB albums on vinyl, and 5 copies of the split 7″ for producing cover art for the split 7″. Details at Murder by Death’s website.
  • Tracks from Rome, the project by Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi – which also features Jack White and Norah Jones – have been made available. You can hear “Two Against One” at Pitchfork, and “The Rose with the Broken Neck” is streaming at NPR.
  • The Due Diligence have made the mp3 version of their album I Will Wreck Your Life available if you just can’t wait for the record release on May 29.
  • If you’re in Long Beach, California, this Thursday, April 21, check out NTSIB friends Hell and Half of Georgia at … Continue reading

Bits: Juniper Tar, The Builders and the Butchers, Gregg Allman, Drive-By Truckers, The Black Keys

  • Juniper Tar has a frigging sweet deal in their online store: their full-length album To The Trees, The Howl Street EP, a lovely T-shirt plus a handmade mix CD. Eight bucks plus shipping. Get on that.
  • My Old Kentucky Blog has a new tune for you from the Builders and the Butchers’ forthcoming album, Dead Reckoning. Hot.
  • Gregg Allman’s new album, Low Country Blues, is streaming on NPR’s First Listen. It’s well worth a listen. (I think I may even like his cover of Skip James’ “Devil Got My Woman”, which is an accomplishment since that song is nearly sacred to me.)
  • Drive-By Truckers has begun posting behind the scenes episodes for their new album Go-Go Boots at their Vimeo page. You can find the first two episodes and other goodies there.
  • The Black Keys made a return visit to Letterman yesterday, and you can watch the performance at The Audio Perv if’n you missed it. And if you missed their great appearance on Saturday Night Live this weekend, well, we’ve got that for you, too. (They also played “Tighten Up”.)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8A1yy_CrIc?fs=1]

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Bits: The Black Keys apart & together, Carolina Chocolate Drops on Fresh Air, mr. Gnome 7″, various tour dates

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xOxHyTP91c]

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