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The fourth deluxe edition compiled from seven Replacements records, Tim: Let it Bleed Edition could be their best boxset. From the raw riches of “Hold My Life,” “Bastards of Young,” and “Left of the Dial” to the forlorn acoustic performance of “Here Comes a Regular,” Tim is the Replacements’ most consistently glorious record, and Westerberg’s songwriting exudes a casual brilliance. Despite its top-shelf songs, 1985’s Tim has often been criticized for producer Tommy Erdelyi’s (aka Tommy Ramone) shrouded digital reverb-to-the max mix, 1980s style. Here engineer Ed Stasium remasters Tim with a newfound sonic depth and instrumental clarity that accentuate the band’s feral ferocity in song. On the Sons of No One: Rare and Unreleased tracks disc found here, the buoyant “Can’t Hardly Wait” shines as an acoustic demo, and “Nowhere is My Home” tears headlong with the Mats’ desperate intensity, Westerberg’s bruised vocal, and Bob Stinson’s flamethrower guitar riff—and it’s produced by Alex Chilton, no less. The Chicago live set, from the opening raunch of “Gary’s Got a Boner” to the existential howl of “Unsatisfied,” reveals what anyone who ever saw them live in their prime knows: The Replacements were simply one of America’s greatest bands.
By Greg Gaston
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