Re-Issues for 2017

On Nov. 10, 2007, I braved the PA/NY winters in a trip to Buffalo’s now defunct Club Infinity, with this lineup awaiting: Cobra Starship, The Rocket Summer, Armor For Sleep, and The Academy Is. Raised on TRL’s “Spankin’ New Music Week” branded rock — specifically anything from the Fueled By Ramen catalog — you should know where my head was at when devising this list. Not that I regret those choices, though. I’d still argue our entry from that aforementioned Academy Is represents some of the most creative of this era’s pop-rock, while lesser-TV-ready bands like Straylight Run, Steel Train and The Color Fred hold up just fine. And if rock isn’t your thing, there should be some 10-year-old curveballs in the list below.

Also, I remember this very, very vividly (although I couldn’t spot myself in the video).

Honorable Mentions

Limbeck — ST
Last pressed in 2007

Thrice — The Alchemy Index
First portion released in 2007

Jay-Z — American Gangster
Last pressed in 2007. Sells for about $50 on secondary markets.

Rilo Kiley — Under The Blacklight
Last pressed in 2007. Sells for about $100 on secondary markets.

Anberlin — Cities
Last pressing was in box-set. Single LP going for over $100 on secondary markets.

Daphne Loves Derby — Good Night, Witness Light
Would be first pressing.

Cobra Starship — Viva La Cobra!
Would be first pressing.

Dewey Cox — Walk Hard (7″)
Am I crazy enough to think this will happen? Yes.

The List

In no particular order. Can be either first pressing, or needed additional pressing.

The Academy Is… — SantiOriginal Label: Fueled By Ramen

The now defunct Chicago band’s second, and most adventurous, LP remains a triumph, anchored by its avoidance of sheen that bands in their genre often fell prey to. First single, “We’ve Got A Big Mess On Our Hands,” is a purposefully strained, messy affair, the hook’s guitar sound more White Stripes than Fall Out Boy. “Sleeping With Giants,” which gave name to that intro concert experience, again opts for disjointed song structure, the chorus almost a relief; the anti-build. There is some Fueled By Ramen tradition here; “Everything We Had” is the standard mid-album ballad. But mostly, they’re going against what came before in much loved opener, Almost Here. Listen to those last four tracks, then jump to Fast Times At Barrington High. You’ll see how they course corrected back to a less exciting “normal.”

Jonny Greenwood — There Will Be Blood
Original Label: Nonesuch Records

I have a simple request. Please don’t change the original artwork on this. Quite possibly the greatest score of the 2000s (Fountain, Her, Social Network, another down our list are probably the candidates), Jonny Greenwood’s work is, as they say, a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” a reliance on classical strings quickly turned unsettling. Just listen to the piano work in “Eat Him By His Own Light,” more akin to horror maestros than period drama. Also, Greenwood should totally, totally do a horror score. Last note, the soundtrack released is only 32 minutes, and Greenwood reportedly wrote hours of music, so could an expanded vinyl reissue be in the cards?

Flight Of The Conchords — The Distant Future
Original Label: Sub Pop Records

The comedy duo’s first Sub Pop release, it’s notable for its inclusion of both “If You’re Into It,” and “Not Crying,” which wouldn’t show up on the following full length. The former is classic Flight, Jemaine asking politely: “Him and you in the nude/That’s what he’s prepared to do/Is that the kind of thing that you think you might be into?,” the song getting progressively dirtier from there. But the real highlight are the live tracks, with great takes of both “Most Beautiful Girl” and “Robots,” in what sounds like a small club and with what sounds like an unsuspecting crowd ¹. We’ve got songs that need to be on vinyl and must-hear live renditions; let’s get this on a 12″ before the robot uprising of the year 2000.

Kanye West — Graduation
Original Label: Roc-A-Fella Records

Upon posting, someone will approach me on Twitter, stating, “I already have this on vinyl!” Your shitty bootleg doesn’t count, sorry. Kanye West’s 2007 Graduation may be lower on my personal Kanye rankings ², but I’d still drop a pretty penny on any reissue, whether they expand the gatefold — as in the 808s & Heartbreak release — or go further with bonus tracks. Those first 3 tracks are still one of the strongest Kanye first-acts, and “Homecoming” holds up despite the rising cult of Chris Martin hate. End our pain. Someone. Respect The Classics maybe? Just imagine a big gatefold of this artwork.

Straylight Run — The Needles The Space
Original Label: Universal

Pressed just once back in 2007, vinyl has sold for around $20 the last couple times it’s come to secondary markets; it just doesn’t show up often. The far superior of the Straylight Run full lengths (their Prepare To Be Wrong EP is another must-hear), The Needles The Space features a more efficient, effective breakdown of John and Michelle Nolan vocals, giving the latter highlights like “The Miracle That Never Came” (the album’s original title) and “Still Alone.” Meanwhile, John gets to sing lead on the greatest 3-song stretch of his career (yes, TBS, Straylight and solo work), with the finale of “Buttoned Down,” “Track #12” and “The First of The Century.” An album that deserves classic status in this era of alt-rock.

Nick Cave/Warren Ellis — The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Original Label: Mute

Another contender in that “Best Score of The Century” conversation, Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’s 2007 collaboration, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, combines the traditional sounds of the western (“Rather Lovely Thing,” “Carnival”) with more modern, eclectic moments (“Song For Jesse,” “What Happens Next”). A less stressful standalone listen than the frantic There Will Be Blood, its string-centered pieces are especially gorgeous, reminding you of the still, barren landscapes of Andrew Dominik’s now classic. And the contradictions between “Song For Jesse” and “Song For Bob,” one complex, sporting moments of brightness, the other an out-and-out tragedy, is alone worth the price of admission (or pressing costs).

New Found Glory — From The Screen To Your Stereo (Pt. II)
Original Label: Drive-Thru Records

Is this an embarrassing one? Is it doubly embarrassing that behind Coming Home, the Screen To Your Stereo material is what I return to most in terms of NFG? I don’t care. Both volumes remain immensely enjoyable, a string of, admittedly, goofy guest stars making part 2 memorable. Nothing tops part 1’s ridiculous rendition of “That Thing You Do!,” but Chris Carrabba joining “The Promise” and Lisa Loeb coming back for her own “Stay (I Missed You)” come close ³. Pundik’s vocals remain much improved from those early days (one thing they actually retained from the Coming Home experiment), and it helps when advanced production can actually match the pop credentials of the originals. These may be ridiculous releases, but they’re my brand of ridiculous.

Mae — Singularity
Original Label: Capitol/Tooth & Nail

With most everything else in their catalog pressed (or being pressed), it seems like only a matter of time before Mae’s major label release gets some vinyl love. And while it seems to get lost in the Everglow aftermath, I’m still quite a fan of its aims, especially in those first four tracks. “Brink of Disaster” is a synth bliss not often matched (maybe MCS’s “Fell In Love Without You”), “Just Let Go” is the type of mid-tempo groove Mae truly thrived in, and “Crazy 8s” has that pre-chorus build I can still get down with.

The Color Fred — Bend To Break
Original Label: Equal Vision Records

Another that’s not necessarily expensive when found, it just doesn’t appear often. And besides putting more copies into the world, reissues spark fresh spins, something this album deserves. Recorded on the tail end of Fred Mascherino’s time in Taking Back Sunday (and featuring tracks like “Minnesota,” intended for that previous band), Bend To Break sports some pretty straightforward rock, but is quite relentless in its approach. Mascherino’s road-worn, yet forceful vocal work is on full display here, as is his penchant for writing propulsive hooks. The album moves in a way TBS hasn’t since his departure, even with a ballad or two tossed in. And I could still sing along after a multi-year break. There’s much to be said for that.

Steel Train — Trampoline
Original Label: Drive-Thru Records

God, I feel like I’ve been banging this drum for years (fuck, I have). The pre-Bleachers/Fun. project for singer-songwriter Jack Antonoff, and one that recently reunited at Antonoff’s own music festival, peaked with their ST in 2010. But Trampoline is no slouch. From lead single “I Feel Weird” and it’s appreciation of life credo (“And I got this girl, not yet crushed by the world; Ill count the freckles on her face one, two, three hundred times a day”); to “Alone On The Sea,” a story of returning home, not recognizing the world around you, there’s much to dissect. And given both songs reference 9/11, we can see the world which shaped this early 20s analysis. Trampoline remains one of Drive-Thru’s best.

Debate on…what do YOU think deserves a 10-year anniversary pressing? Jump over to Facebook or Twitter and let us know what should be on this list. And make sure to listen to our Spotify playlist, featuring tracks from these selections.

1. These live cuts were actually my first ever exposure to the band. They’re so good that the studio versions just never did it for me 
2. Kanye Rankings, as of 2017. 1. My Dark Beautiful | 2. College Dropout | 3. 808s | 4. Pablo | 5. Yeezus | 6. Graduation | 7. Late Registration 
3. I might have to do a list of cover songs where the original artist is actually involved.