After The Replacements broke up everyone who loved the group expected Paul Westerberg to continue putting out great music and he did not disappoint. What people did not expect was that Tommy Stinson would go onto record a gem of an album, but that’s exactly what he did with Bash & Pop’s Friday Night is Killing Me.
At the time it came out label politics, timing, and many of the things that hurt The Replacements commercial prospects kept the album a treasured secret among ‘Mats fans. Friday Night Is Killing Me was rough and beautiful at the same time. A rock record that was poetic as well — something that stood up with the best of Stinson’s first band.
Now, over 20 years since Bash & Pop’s debut (and only album) was released in 1993, Stinson is bringing it back.
What is Bash & Pop up to?
Stinson, fresh off The Replacements reunion and some solo touring, has decided to make another Bash & Pop album. He’s doing so by raising money at Pledge Music.
“Since recording my last two solo records in a rather piecemeal way, I found myself longing to make a record in the same way that we made the early Replacements records: live, in the studio, as a band,” the bassist said in a statement. “Since early 2015 I’ve been recording new songs with new and old friends, cutting all of them as live as possible without losing too much fidelity nor over-thinking the songs.”
Stinson explained the difference between making his previous solo albums and what he considers a Bash & Pop album.
Whether I’m wearing my artist or producer hat, I will forever lust after the capture of lightning in a bottle, no matter how incomprehensible or daunting it may seem. Since early 2015 I’ve been recording new songs with new and old friends, cutting all of them as live as possible without losing too much fidelity nor over-thinking the songs.
Recording live with a band is the only way I know this to be done. As the life of this project developed, the elements of what make a band a BAND started to appear: The spontaneity, the solidarity, the piss, the vinegar, the good times and the angst. These are all of the things that I think make for a great rock n’ roll record; like a car careening helplessly off the road, only to be spared catastrophe at the very last second.
Fans who want to help with the album can buy it or various packages including it on Pledge Music. These include copies of a special vinyl re-release of Friday Night is Killing Me, T-shirts, and concert tickets.
