Paul Westerberg: No "Catcher In The Slump"

I'm back! Starting classes, starting up work again and losing yet another computer cord have taken their toll, and I really can't promise updates will be quite as frequent as they were over summer, but I'm gonna try and post a few entries a week. I mean, so much goes on that I can't resist staying away too long.

Case in point: Paul Westerberg played for a crowd of 500 at the MGD Craft show this past weekend, answering interview questions and playing some new songs he's been working on. Several Minneapolis-based blogs were kind enough to share some live mp3s of the new stuff (as well as the rest of the show). Want to hear the whole show? Head over to paulwesterberg.net for mp3s of all the songs and interview portions in mp3 format. Westerberg's a good interviewee, really entertaining and interesting as usual.

LISTEN:
"Everyone's Stupid" (Live) [MP3]

Ryan Adams was also in Minneapolis this weekend, and for all the fuss made about his "meltdown" (oh please), it seems a little insignificant, given Adams' past behaviors. Complaining about the sound in the venue and not coming out for an encore isn't really up there, is it?

Paul Westerberg To Be Featured In MGD "Craft" Series

Yeah, I can't wait... can't hardly waaaaait. Seriously.

I live nowhere near Minneapolis, but this is just so cool that have to mention it. On Sept. 23, Paul Westerberg (of the Replacements, for anybody who doesn't know) is going to be playing a private show before rolling cameras at First Avenue in Minneapolis (his first since he injured his hand in January, if I'm correct). Tickets aren't going on sale, either - you have to enter to win them from Minneapolis radio station Cities 97. The show's being presented by "The Craft" concert series that's co-sponsored by Miller and the Rock Hall of Fame (into which the 'Mats still haven't been inducted), and the e-mail I got described it as "a mash-up of an unplugged performance and an Inside the Actors Studio discussion." Um, no fair, Minneapolis. It'll be available online, though, for all you rabid 'Mats fans out there. Can't beat seeing the man from Minneapolis live in Minneapolis, though.

Click HERE to enter to win the tickets online.

Oh, and here's a typically snarky Pitchfork news item which talks more about the concept of "The Craft" (yeah, the MGD press quotes were a little bit silly). Others featured in the series include Elvis Costello, Jim James (of MMJ), Patty Griffin and Ben Gibbard. Westerberg's appearance is more of a surprise than anybody else, though.

Sorry, nothing to report on the possibility of a Replacements reunion or another Westerberg solo album. Patience, friends, patience. But if your Westerberg/Replacements quota isn't filled yet, you can look forward to the upcoming Replacements book, The Replacements: All Over The Shouting by music journalist and fellow Minneapolis resident Jim Walsh, due on Nov. 15 (more on that HERE). Or join in the fun at PaulWesterberg.net. Relisten to the old classic 'Mats albums.

LISTEN:
"We May Be The Ones" [MP3] from Stereo

ON THE WEB:
Paul Westerberg's website

Album Of The Week: Paul Westerberg's Folker (2004)

As a preface to this first Album of the Week, let it be known that my favorite kind of album is the kind that a reviewer might give a B instead of an A. There's something about these misunderstood underdogs that merit multiple listens for me, and these usually end up being my most cherished albums. Paul Westerberg's Folker (2004), is no exception to this rule. While critics gave this album fairly high reviews (most were just shocked he's still putting out decent albums), it pretty much seemed to slip right past most people. And hey -- I'm certainly no different than most people, in this regard: I'd probably never even heard of the Replacements back in 2004, much less Paul Westerberg. However, after falling hard for the Replacements' loud and brash and strangely melodic brand of rock and roll years after the band broke up (I guess I was about 2 or 3 years old at that point in time), Westerberg's music was the next best thing (and that's not to put the album down as second-rate, it's just that not many people top the Replacements in my book). The man's pop sensibilities have been evident (though obviously more subverted) all the way back to some of the band's earliest records, and on Folker, he's managed to craft the kind of classic-sounding rock album people just don't seem interested (or capable, maybe) of making anymore. There really isn't a bad song on the entire album (even those which have been written off as "filler" are insanely sing-a-long-able), which he recorded by himself in his basement in Minneapolis. There's something about the way Westerberg writes these folk-rock songs - he's a master at writing memorable choruses, remembering things with a wistful sadness that's still begrudgingly fond (see "My Dad"). I'd love more people to have the chance to listen to this album -- I'm so glad I found it.

LISTEN:
"Looking Up In Heaven" [MP3]

ON THE WEB:
Paul Westerberg's website

Reveille's Scoop On Upcoming 'Mats Book

Reveille Magazine's got an interesting article and interview up that previews an upcoming book (The Replacements: All Over But The Shouting, due out November 15, 2007) written by music journalist (and Minneapolis native) Jim Walsh, who was there at the height of it all. The book's a collection of stories, interviews, quotes, photos chronicling the band's turbulent rise and eventual flameout.

An interesting quote from the interview with Walsh:

Reveille: Do you think the remaining members of The Replacements will play live together ever again?
Walsh: Yes.

Don't we all wish? Paul Westerberg's recent solo albums have been impressive, though, so I won't get too wrapped up in that thought.

ON THE WEB:
Reveille Magazine
Buy the book on Amazon.com