Calling On Boston With The 'Mats

Last year at about this same time I attended Riot Fest in Byers, Colorado in order to see the Replacements live for the first time in more than 25 years. My friend o' friends Rick T. had flown out to Denver from San Diego to see them as well, which was fitting, as he was the last person I'd seen them with all those years ago

The 'Mats performance last year was nothing short of magical for me - the energy and enthusiasm of Westerberg and Stinson was palpable, as was that of replacement Replacements Freese (drums) and Minehan (guitar).

Their performance at the Boston Calling music festival was just as powerful as was the Riot Fest performance, though there seemed to be a lack of...I don't know...charm? I mean, the band was tight and played 22, possibly 23 tunes (I can't exactly remember, though I do remember them covering the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" at one point), but neither PW nor Tommy seemed to want to engage the audience in too much banter as they did at Riot Fest (though PW did comment on the odor of weed, and Tommy somewhat apologized for a lackluster show back in '91).

Still, it was a good concert, and I screamed/sang along with every song, esp. I'll Be You, (Kiss Me) On The Bus, and of course Bastards Of Young. Being there with LLN, JO, and BN made it all the more special (and surreal to a point...who woulda thunk 25 years ago I'd be seeing the 'Mats in Boston with that trio? Nobody, that's who).

Of course, there were other acts playing Boston Calling, but I wasn't really there for any of them. The 1975 from Manchester in the UK played the stage we were camped out in front of waiting for the Replacements, and they were good, but they were no 'Mats (there was a very nice bit wherein Matt Healy, the lead vocalist for The 1975 pulled a young girl out of the audience and onto the stage for a song - her reactions, from mouthing "Take my picture" to someone in the audience to frantically texting as she sat on the stage as the band performed, were hilarious).