Pitchfork: Big Star to Release New Album

For the Men and Women of the Rock and Roll Canon, life is merely a series of endless misfortunes, each artistic endeavor overshadowed by a past triumph. Their solo albums and side projects register temporary blips on the music landscape, to be forgotten months later, or worse, used against them as punchlines. Basically, they can't win. All they can really do is fade away and get real jobs, or bank on their glorious histories. Eventually, when the time is right, they'll almost invariably reunite with their old bands, tour, and even, in rare cases, release new albums. On September 26, one of the canon's most revered astral bodies, Big Star, will follow suit with In Space, their first album since 1978's Third/Sister Lovers.

To be released by Rykodisc, In Space will feature mastermind and principal songwriter Alex Chilton and drummer Jody Stephens, both original members of the classic quartet. Rounding out the lineup are Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow of fellow power-poppers the Posies. Auer and Stringfellow have been part of Big Star since 1993, when the group reformed to tour. Tracklist:

01 Dony
02 Lady Sweet
03 Best Chance We've Ever Had
04 Turn My Back on the Sun
05 Love Revolution
06 February's Quiet
07 Mine Exclusively
08 A Whole New Thing
09 Aria Largo
10 Hung Up With Summer
11 Do You Wanna Make It
12 Makeover

Big Star recorded three much-lauded albums in their brief time together, 1972's #1 Record, 1974's Radio City and Third/Sister Lovers, which was released after the band imploded. Formed in 1971 in Memphis by singer/guitarist Chris Bell, Big Star melded British Invasion pop/rock with Chilton's penchant for eccentricity. Bell and Chilton had a turbulent partnership and Bell exited the group in 1972, after the release of #1 Record. Bell later died in a car crash in 1978 at the age of 27. Commercially unsuccessful and ignored during their time, Big Star gained notoriety later when acts such as REM and Teenage Fanclub cited them as major influences-- not to mention the Replacements' song "Alex Chilton".