Record Rack: A round-up of the week’s new albums, expanded reissues and/or box sets, appearing each Monday on Slicing Up Eyeballs.
ARTIST: The Smithereens
RELEASE: Smithereens 2011
BACKSTORY: The New Jersey retro-rockers drop the whole cover band schtick and reunite with their ’80s-era producer and “Fifth Smithereen” Don Dixon for the band’s first collection of new material since 1999’s God Save the Smithereens, due in stores this week (see full tracklist and hear a stream of the first single “Sorry” here).
BUY IT: Smithereens 2011 via Amazon.com
ARTIST: INXS
RELEASE: Original Sin
BACKSTORY: The Australian rockers’ new collection of re-recorded hits featuring the likes of Ben Harper, Rob Thomas, Train’s Pat Monahan, Tricky and even occasional frontman J.D. Fortune taking over for the late Michael Hutchence finally gets a belated U.S. release this week (read more about the whole project here).
BUY IT: Original Sin via Amazon.com
ARTIST: Material Issue
RELEASE: International Pop Overthrow: 20th Anniversary
BACKSTORY: The cult-classic debut album by the Chicago-bred power-pop trio — home to modern-rock radio hits “Valerie Loves Me” and “Diane” — receives an expanded 20th anniversary reissue this week via Hip-O Select, filled out with eight rare bonus tracks (see tracklist here).
BUY IT: International Pop Overthrow: 20th Anniversary Edition via Amazon.com
More from Sebadoh, Dead Can Dance, Art of Noise and The Undertones after the jump…
ARTIST: Sebadoh
RELEASE: Bakesale: Deluxe Edition
BACKSTORY: Dinosaur Jr bassist Lou Barlow this week reissues, in the U.K., a hugely expanded version of his beloved lo-fi act’s 1994 breakout album, featuring the remastered original plus 25 extra tracks, including B-sides, acoustic versions and demos. It arrives in the U.S. on June 14 via Sub Pop Records (see tracklist here).
BUY IT: Bakesale: Deluxe Edition via Amazon.co.uk
ARTIST: The Art of Noise
RELEASE: Into Battle with the Art Of Noise
BACKSTORY: Both the first release by The Art of Noise and the first release by ZTT Records, this 1983 EP is reissued this week in the U.K., expanded from its original nine songs to feature 27 tracks, including 18 songs from the never-heard-before 1984 album Worship, plus singles “Beat Box,” “Moments In Love” and more.
BUY IT: Into Battle with the Art Of Noise via Amazon.co.uk
ARTIST: Dead Can Dance
RELEASE: Spiritchaser
BACKSTORY: The final album by the influential 4AD act — originally released in 1996, and featuring such tracks as “Song of the Stars,” “Indus,” “Songs of the Dispossessed” and “The Snake and the Moon” — is reissued this week on audiophile vinyl as a limited-edition, numbered 2LP set by the sound mavens at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab.
BUY IT: Spiritchaser via Amazon.com
ARTIST: The Undertones
RELEASE: True Confessions: Singles = A’s + B’s
BACKSTORY: This new 32-track, 2CD collection chronicles the rise and fall of one of John Peel’s favorite groups, the Northern Ireland punk combo responsible for “Teenage Kicks” and a host of other songs included here, such as “Here Comes the Summer,” “Jimmy Jimmy” and “The Love Parade.”
BUY IT: True Confessions: Singles = A’s + B’s via Amazon.co.uk
