A new year and a new tour from Tommy Stinson, formerly the bassist/guitarist for 80’s legends, The Replacements. As an exceptional start to the year, those living in the northern ‘burbs not only got to catch a great artist but also avoid the grind of getting to venues downtown. Thank you, From the Earth Brewing.
Stinson seems a no-pretense kind of guy. Having his amp fail during sound check obviously caused him some aggravation happening at the beginning of a tour and the likely a financial setback. But there’s humor to be found there, such as his now useless amp settings for his playlist. Still, he managed, and the sound, like his guitar precision and vocals, was sterling.
After two strong opening sets from Karla Rose and Diane Gentle (also both on solo acoustic), Stinson played a solid hour and a half set. Fans probably know that there’s a lot of attitude in Stinson’s lyrics. They’re worth checking out. From “Nothing,” – “Well did you ever see them holding hands / Their love first lost / Before their first dance.” Ouch. Or better, “Match Made in Hell,” – “As a matter of fact we’re both equally inept / As a matter of fact it’s failure we expect / We’re match made in hell.” Ironically, he recorded that song back in 2011 with his fiancé. Maybe it was the busted amp, but there was a delicious venom in his delivery of that song this night. One has to wonder if “Can’t Be Bothered,” said to have been written during his last tour with Paul Westerberg, is a comment on that relationship.
His repertoire isn’t as bleak and bitter as that, though. There’s occasional elements of Dylan in the cleverness of his prose and delivery. He played several songs from his new critically acclaimed album, Wronger, recorded with his friend Chip Roberts and released under the name Cowboys in the Campfire. It has a rootsy feel and even a rockabilly song. Live, “Schemes” stood out for its pop sensibility and, well, “Fall Apart Together” (…one last time) was a reminder that relationship difficulties drive a lot of Stinson’s creativity and make for good songs.
A benefit of a solo show is that it allows a certain amount of freedom from working with others. Stinson checked his smartphone a couple times looking at his playlist, muttering “no… no… no. Ok, that one!” So you get what he’s in the mood to play, and shouldn’t an artist be at their best when they can play what they want, when they want it?
At the finish of a wicked rendition of “Destroy Me,” he hinted about a potential encore to play “the trinity.” This he did, stitching together three stellar songs from Friday Night is Killing Me. Certainly, Wednesday night didn’t kill him, other than his amp, and his enthusiasm for this southeastern tour should motivate fans sitting on the sidelines to get tickets.
For those considering VIP time with Stinson, he gave those fans what appeared to be a focused 30 minutes to sit around and chat. He also wandered in and out of the venue several times, surprisingly without being pulled to the side from what appeared to be a comfortably capacity crowd. And for those interested in physical product , he was available at the merch table afterwards to chat and sign autographs. But… out of CDs.
Setlist (partial):
With Karla Rose on violin and backing vocals:
Encore:
