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Uncle Tupelo: Band Plays Great Music in any Language

Paul Hampel

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 3, 1993

Great Danes: An excerpt from a review of a recent Uncle Tupelo concert in a Danish magazine reads: "The Headbangerne stoppede pludselig LSD-dansen, men det varede ikke laenge. Sa var ogsa de indfanget af magien, og pludselig forstod alle, hvorfor dette orkester var hentet over dammen og praesenteret som et kommende verdensnavn. For det er Uncle Tupelo. Intet mindre. De er i virkeligheden chokerende faerdige og modnede, nar de tor vaere det. Men de skulle altsa ogsa lige slutte af med to numre mainstream rock, der ikke matchede forbilledet Neil Young, nar han er vred." Jorgen Grunnet, the Minister-Counselor at the Danish Embassy in Washington, translated it for us: "The headbangers suddenly stopped the LSD dance, but not for long. Then, they too were caught by the magic and suddenly everyone understood why this band had been brought across the pond to be presented as a coming world name. Because this is Uncle Tupelo. No less. They are really shockingly accomplished and mature when they dare be so. But they also just had to finish off with two numbers of mainstream rock which did not match their idol Neil Young when he is angry." Manager Tony Margherita said that the members of the Belleville, Ill., band - Jay Farrar, Bill Belzer and Jeff Tweedy - are having a blast on their European tour, which began two weeks ago. "They're really having fun," he said. "I think this tour is similar to their first tours out of the St. Louis region, when they traveled around America. There were people at their shows who knew the music and people who just came to check it out. They're drawing 100 to 200 people in most places." In Malmo, Sweden, the band ran into some compatriots from Springfield, Mo. "They had the night off in Malmo and went to the Skeletons concert," Margherita said. "It was weird." Uncle Tupelo is now touring Germany and Holland as the opening act for Bob Mould's group Sugar. The band returns home in mid-December for a performance at 9 p.m. Dec. 18 at Mississippi Nights, 914 N. 1st Street on Laclede's Landing. Cover is $6. All ages.

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