The Replacements staged their third of three announced reunion shows last night in a dusty farm field about 45 minutes east of Denver, the site of the third installment of this summer Riot Fest and what may or may not have been the final appearance by the 2013 incarnation of the ‘Mats, performing for the first time in 22 years.
The Replacements took the stage tonight at Riot Fest in Chicago for the second of at least three planned reunion gigs (“We haven’t played in 3 weeks, but fuck it,” Paul Westerberg told the crowd before launching into “Takin’ a Ride”), and managed to play mostly the same set as their big comeback gig.
The Replacements Live Archive Project — a tremendous resource for ‘Mats fans — already has shared a full recording of last night’s historic set by The Replacements at Riot Fest in Toronto, the band’s first in 22 years. Now, while it is an audience recording, it’s actually surprisingly good.
A little after 8:45 p.m. EDT tonight, the long-sought, little-believed reunion of The Replacements — in this case, Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson, plus Josh Freese and David Minehan — took the stage at Riot Fest in Toronto, delivering career-spanning in the band’s first performance in 22 years.
The Pixies are now set to debut their new Kim Deal-less lineup at Chicago’s Riot Fest this September, joining a bill that includes The Replacements, Blondie, Violent Femmes, Mission of Burma, X, Dinosaur Jr and Peter Hook, among many others. The Pixies were added today alongside Joan Jett, TSOL and Suicidal Tendencies.
Here it is: The first footage, albeit just 9 seconds and shot through the sliding-glass door of a rehearsal space, of The Replacements, together again and performing in 2013. The band’s official Facebook page shared video of the ‘Mats running through performing “Alex Chilton.”
The Replacements — namely frontman Paul Westerberg and bassist Tommy Stinson — will reunite on stage for the first time in 22 years later this summer to headline Riot Fest in Toronto, Denver and Chicago, site of the band’s unceremonious final performance in Grant Park on July 4, 1991.
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