Generally speaking, when I do shows devoted to years of the past I go way back. Like, at the bare minimum 25 years, and as far back as 50 years. Looking at my shows from 2013, though, I decided tonight I’d do something a little different. Let’s go through some of my favorite records from only ten years ago.
While I am one that believes there’s great rock and roll released each and every years (despite what many of my fellow oldsters proclaim), 2013 was even better than usual. There’s all sorts of lofi indie power pop from the likes of Mind Spiders, Bad Sports, and Fidlar. There’s the discovery of a wonderful up and coming songwriter named Lydia Loveless. There’s the second release by the reformed Superchunk (my favorite record of the year).
And, of course, there’s also the return of The Replacements. Yes, this happened due to a tragedy, as Slim Dunlap had suffered a stroke the previous year. But what a joy to hear Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson quickly recording a handful of their favorite oldies. Even better was the Songs For Slim singles series which saw all kinds of Slim’s friends recording their favorite Dunalp tunes.
As for this week’s edition of “52 Weeks of Teenage Kicks”, I once again have a band I wasn’t acquainted with before. The Vamps are a UK band that formed in 2012, and over the next few years their first two records went gold in their home country. 2013 saw an EP called Can We Dance that included the live cover of “Teenage Kicks” that opens tonight’s show. And like always, I must again plead with y’all for more versions of “Teenage Kicks”. If you are a musician, or have any contact with artists that could record their own take on the classic, please contact me!
For more info, including setlists, head to http://scotthudson.blogspot.com