Normally, I wouldn’t cover a live event from a band that I had covered so recently, but when the opportunity came up to see Soul Asylum again, this time performing acoustically along with a Q&A panel with the great Matt Pinfield, I knew it would be a fresh enough experience that I couldn’t pass it up.
The evening opened with Pinfield speaking with the band, covering subjects ranging from their new album, the producers they’ve worked with, coming up in the Minneapolis music scene and signing to Twin Tone, and even Dave Pirner’s Hot Wheels collection. The band seemed to have fun with the experience, not taking themselves too seriously, and even teasing Pinfield a bit about his die-hard love for “Somebody to Shove”.
After an hour of questions, the stage cleared for the acoustic set. The band opened with the wonderful “Misery”. In this setting, the band gave the track a cool instrumental coda that helped it stand apart from the original rock recording of it. “High Road”, from the new album Slowly But Shirley came next, followed by “Black Gold”. “Freak Accident” was a highlight in this setting, as the paired-down version of the song allowed the lyrics to shine, with their humor and heart on full display.
As “Runaway Train” was already a song written around acoustic guitars, the moving track retained its power in this setting. And as a nod to Pinfield, the band finished their set with “Somebody to Shove”, a punk anthem that still works well stripped-down.
While not available yet, the full performance that was live-streamed will eventually be available to view at the Grammy Museum’s Live: Collection.
The Indy Review 