The GbV//Replacements Feud.

Drama at Riot Fest 2013.

Robert Pollard was bumbling on about how his band releases so many records, how they weren’t like some of the reunion bands at Riot Fest - obviously making a jab at The Replacements, playing their first shows in 23 years.

Well, I saw The Replacements later that night, and there’s something to be said for scarcity. They were magnificent. Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson came running onto the stage in orange cowboy hats and pink skirts. Punk awesomeness and skirted hijinks ensued. All the dads in the audience had flashbacks and cried (half of them had road tripped from Minnesota, The Replacements’ home state).

And at the end of the show, Westerberg did a spot-on impersonation of Pollard’s mic-spinning gimmicks, then unplugged the mic and threw it to the audience.

We laughed. GbV 0, Replacements 1. That’s what I say.