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Forming in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1979, The Replacements<\/strong> are considered to be one of the pioneers for alternative rock.\u00a0For most of their career, the band\u2019s line up included guitarist\/vocalist Paul Westerberg, guitarist Bob Stinson, bassist Tommy Stinson and drummer Chris Mars. This lasted up until 1986 after Bob Stinson left due to in-fighting with Westerberg plus substance abuse problems. Slim Dunlap would take Stinson\u2019s place, whilst Steve Foley replaced Chris Mars as the quartet\u2019s drummer in 1990. Yet, the band would ultimately split in 1991 pursuing various projects; Westerberg pursued a solo career, whilst Tommy played in short lived but fan favourite projects such as Bash & Pop and Perfect before replacing Duff McKagan as the bassist for Guns N\u2019 Roses in 1998. Stinson\u2019s half brother and former guitarist Bob died in 1995 from alcohol abuse, whilst second drummer Foley died in 2008 from an accidental overdose from\u00a0prescription\u00a0medication.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t until 2012 that The Replacements<\/strong> would resurface. Westerberg, Tommy Stinson and Chris Mars recorded an EP entitled ‘Songs for Slim’<\/em>, aptly named, for it was released in 2013 to help benefit former bandmate Slim Dunlap, who suffered a stroke. Apart from Mars, The Replacements<\/strong> would play their first shows after 22 years at Riot Fest in Toronto, Chicago and Denver in late August and September last year. Filling out the rest of the current line up is current Weezer and The Vandals drummer Josh Freese, and on guitar, Dave Minehan from Boston band The Neighborhoods. The Replacements<\/strong> haven\u2019t looked back since, and Westerberg has said they neither will rule out touring or a new album.<\/p>\n In terms of style and in contrast to their contemporaries, the band plays heart on sleeve punk influenced rock songs, with Westerberg\u2019s raw yells and self disparaging lyrics. Their first three albums, including ‘Hey Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash’<\/em> in 1981, ‘Hootenanny’<\/em> in 1983, and ‘Let It Be’<\/em> in 1984, were released on Minneapolis indie label Twin\/Tone Records<\/strong>. Whilst the first two was influenced by raucous post punk and hardcore from the time, the third strayed towards more melody. This would play a part in them being signed to a major label, and influencing the group\u2019s various line up changes. They signed to Sire Records<\/strong> in 1984, thus releasing 1985\u2019s ‘Tim’<\/em>, 1987\u2019s ‘Pleased to Meet Me’<\/em>, 1989\u2019s ‘Don’t Tell a Soul’<\/em>, and 1990\u2019s ‘All Shook Down’<\/em> (the latter considered by many to be a Paul Westerberg solo record).\u00a0<\/p>\n In their heyday, the band were known for their unpredictable live shows. More often than not, their performances would involve them being intoxicated and trashing their instruments. However, they would equally play sober also at unpredictable points, critics often citing them as being brilliant in performance in such a state of mind.<\/p>\n In line with the unpredictable nature of their performances, we at Already Head have also veered clear of the expected this week by not tying “Versus”<\/strong> with a news related topic. Thus we shall ask the debated question on what is The Replacements<\/strong>’ best album. Our Guest Writer this week, Harker<\/b> lead vocalist\/guitarist Mark Boniface, defends ‘Don’t Tell a Soul’<\/em>, often considered to be the band\u2019s weakest album. On the other side, our very own Assistant Editor, Aaron Lohan, boldly claims why ‘Let It Be’<\/em> is the band\u2019s magnum opus.<\/p>\n What do you consider to be The Replacements\u2019 best album and why? Let us know on our\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0pages.<\/em><\/p>\n Don\u2019t Tell a Soul<\/strong> (by Mark Boniface, Harker<\/a>) The reason why I chose \u2018Don\u2019t Tell A Soul\u2019<\/em> is because, when talking to fellow fanatics, the album is always either skipped completely in favor of earlier records or misjudged by it\u2019s abandonment of the bands \u201cdrunk and disorderly, but who fucking cares\u201d attitude.<\/p>\n By the time the album was due to being recorded, there was an obvious change in the band\u2019s outlook; they had lost guitarist Bob Stinson halfway through tracking the demos to their previous record \u2018Pleased To Meet Me\u2019<\/em> due to drug and alcohol related problems which forced a cloud of doubt amongst the remaining members. The songs became a lot less \u2018raw\u2019, with the band favoring a cleaner, alternative rock sound, which at the time was flooding radio stations.<\/p>\n The first thing that is a striking difference when you first hit play on \u2018Don\u2019t Tell A Soul\u2019<\/em> is the difference in sound when compared to previous albums. The band dropped the garage band sound completely in favor of some staple late 80\u2019s production techniques. Acoustic guitars, double tracked vocals and a nice beautiful open space sounding drum kit. Tracks like\u00a0\u2018Talent Show\u2019,<\/em> \u2018I\u2019ll Be You\u2019,<\/em> and \u2018Back To Back\u2019,<\/em> show exactly how much work the band and producer Matt Wallace put into the creation of this album.<\/p>\n While these tracks are great examples of the record\u2019s high production value, there are still a few steady rockers on here. \u2018Anywhere\u2019s Better Than Here\u2019<\/em> is a rhythm-based stomper, complete with great call and response vocals. \u2018I won\u2019t\u2019<\/em> is a short Replacements style blues\/rock and roll number, complete with wailing Harmonica. And lastly, the record houses in my personal opinion some of the most underrated pop songs of the last century.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Any person that has listened to this record and snuffed it has yet to know the full beauty of one thing The Replacements<\/strong> do, and that is write an amazing pop song. \u2018Asking Me Lies\u2019<\/em> is a great upbeat piano driven indie rock shaker with similarities to a few later Cure tracks. \u2019They\u2019re Blind\u2019<\/em> is a homage to 50\u2019s rock and roll\/doo wop. \u2018Achin To Be\u2019<\/em> and \u2018I\u2019ll Be You\u2019<\/em> were the album\u2019s two singles, which the latter was one of their two charting singles.<\/p>\n The album was there to show the band\u2019s attempt at becoming something more than a band that would record in just a few takes. They wanted a stab at creating a high production album, which would make the listener appreciate their music in a different light. However, they were still up to their usual attitude when on stage, with Paul Westerberg singing about the usage of pills at the 1st International Rock Awards when asked to censor a line in \u2018Talent Show\u2019.<\/p>\n The Replacements<\/strong> were a band that according to fans were never given a chance; there was a point in the mid eighties where them and REM were both on the verge of success explosion. While everybody knows that the opposing band went on to massive success with selling over 85 million records, Westerberg and Co remained at a steady pace releasing each record how they wanted to, when they wanted to. Keeping their reputation as a genuine \u2018garage\u2019 band that could be living the exact same life as you, this attitude is alive in so many bands across world nowadays which shows their massive influence amongst artists, underground and beyond.<\/p>\n Let It Be<\/strong> (by Aaron Lohan<\/a>) From first song \u2018I Will Dare\u2019<\/em>, there\u2019s a thrilling sense of charm as those light chords swing into 50\u2019s style aplomb. It twirls you into something fun, as well as being melancholic. Basically, this record beholds a balance of their witty and raucous early work with, what was here, a newfound sense of melody and melancholic beauty. For instance, to go from the tongue-in-cheek tone on \u2018Tommy Gets His Tonsils Out\u2019<\/em> to the heart on sleeve yearning on \u2018Answering Machine\u2019<\/em>, shows how varied this record is. It doesn\u2019t take itself too seriously, whilst at the same time it\u2019s sincere in the serious subject matter Westerberg sings. In regards to that latter point, you can look no further than the piano led LBGT anthem \u2018Androgynous\u2019<\/em>; fun and sweet in delivering such a socio-political message, a contrast with the bands of their hardcore roots.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n As well as varying in lyrical theme, the music has a range within its alt punk confines. \u2018Favourite Thing\u2019<\/em> is mid-tempo rock \u2018n\u2019 roll at its most delightful. \u2018We\u2019re Comin\u2019 Out\u2019<\/em> is near furious in hardcore influenced pace, before interluding into complementary finger snapping before resuming. \u2018Sixteen Blue\u2019<\/em> meanwhile is laid back in its bluesy rock tale of teenage sexual anxiety. Each song accompanies a certain mood with how the band delivers them in sound. There\u2019s grittiness in numbers like \u2018Gary\u2019s Got a Boner\u2019<\/em> and the cover of \u2018Black Diamond\u2019<\/em> by Kiss; this shows The \u2018Mats\u2019<\/strong> bite. This is counterbalanced by the softer touches, thus making it all the more human. What better example to use than what has to be their best and classic tune,\u00a0\u2018Unsatisfied\u2019<\/em>. Not to be all soppy, but that song has to be one of the most beautiful pieces of music I\u2019ve set my ears upon. The melancholic acoustic notes are dazzling yet sad in the most genuine way possible. It really does gut you into two that one; it is that powerful in its emotion.<\/p>\n What else can I say about this record? The words are difficult to pronounce in how brilliant it is. In summary, it deals with self-consciousness; the awkward anxiety found in youth; generational discontent; and humanity at its amateur. Noting that last word, \u2018amateur\u2019, it balances such serious topic with a sense of giddiness in parts, yet will switch into \u2018maturity\u2019 when it has to. To the musicians behind this record: Paul Westerberg, Chris Mars, Tommy and Bob Stinson (R.I.P.), thank you for making a pinnacle achievement in sincere, fun and heartfelt college rock \u2018n\u2019 roll at its finest. This is the soundtrack for people in their twenties and beyond. Trust me on this, I haven\u2019t looked back since, and neither should you.<\/p>\n The Replacements<\/strong> links: Website<\/a>|Facebook<\/a>|Twitter<\/a><\/p>\n ‘Hours’<\/em> by Harker<\/strong> is out now on Unfun Records<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Harker<\/strong> links: Website<\/a>|Facebook<\/a>|Bandcamp<\/a>|Twitter<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Forming in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1979, The Replacements are considered to be one of the pioneers for alternative rock.\u00a0For most of their career, the band\u2019s line up included guitarist\/vocalist Paul Westerberg, guitarist Bob Stinson, bassist Tommy Stinson and drummer Chris Mars. This lasted up until 1986 after Bob Stinson left due to in-fighting with Westerberg […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22502,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8181,2123],"tags":[62,9955,122,178,9953,2910,9957,9956,5276,9954,9952,5966,9958],"class_list":["post-22501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-post","category-versus","tag-already-heard","tag-dont-tell-a-soul","tag-feature","tag-harker","tag-let-it-be","tag-reprise-records","tag-rhino-entertainment","tag-sire-records","tag-the-replacements","tag-twin-tone-records","tag-unfun-records","tag-versus","tag-warner-music-group"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
I feel I need to start by saying,\u00a0\u2018Don\u2019t Tell A Soul\u2019<\/em> isn\u2019t my favorite Replacements<\/strong> album. In fact, I probably wouldn\u2019t ever be able to favor a single album of their back catalogue, as each record shows the band in an ever-changing transitional stage. First album \u2018Hey Ma\u2026\u2019<\/em> was a scatty, raw and powerful homage to basement bands of the early eighties, while the last album,\u00a0\u2018All Shook Down\u2019,<\/em> was a fantastic Alt Rock album by an ever-important underdog band taking a final bow.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
After much contemplating over what I consider to be The Replacements<\/strong>\u2019 best album, one could look no further than their third, and finest, \u2018Let It Be\u2019<\/em>. \u2018Tim\u2019<\/em> is heart-wrenchingly solid sure, and I respect my opponent in defending \u2018Don\u2019t Tell a Soul\u2019<\/em> (considered by most fans to be the weakest in their catalogue), yet it simply feels right to me that \u2018Let It Be\u2019<\/em> is their magnum opus. Out of all seven (or six, depending on whether you consider \u2018All Shook Down\u2019<\/em> to be a Paul Westerberg solo effort) albums, this, for me, is their pinnacle achievement. In fact, \u2018Let It Be\u2019<\/em> was the first album by the band that immersed me. Last June, whilst interrailing in Europe, most of my soundtrack involved this record, as well as the aforementioned \u2018Tim\u2019<\/em> and fifth LP \u2018Pleased to Meet Me\u2019<\/em>. Focusing on the record at hand, \u2018Let It Be\u2019 <\/em>is flawless, and I\u2019ll explain why.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n