The Decemberists Prepare to Be Reissued, Twice

Their math is as poor as their timing

Despite the fact that this is the sort of news that the good people at Irony, Inc. should have had us report two months ago, it nonetheless brings joy to my heart to announce that Kill Rock Stars and Hush Records are planning a joint reissue of The Decemberists' long-playing debut, Castaways and Cutouts. For those of you who missed the boat on the Jeff-Mangum-meets-John-Linnell-vocal-stylings of frontman Colin Meloy's original gem, the re-release is set to hit the racks on April 8th. But, Brandon, you're likely whining, I can't wait a whole two months for my Decemberists fix. Fortunately, you won't have to.

The good folks at Hush are set to reissue the band's first EP, 5 Songs, which will be in stores on March 4th. The EP is currently available for pre-order on the Hush Records website. Do I smell a fantastic post-Valentine's Day gift in the works? Despite the rather misleading title, the EP is scheduled to include a sixth song in addition to the original five. The bonus track, "The Apology Song", rounds out the EP, which will be packaged with a full color, six-panel foldout. Oooooh... Tracklist (with sexy runtimes, to boot):

01 Oceanside 3:29
02 Shiny 5:11
03 My Mother Was a Chinese Trapese Artist 4:42
04 Angel, Won't You Call Me? 2:40
05 Don't Mind 4:39
06 Apology Song 3:11

But, Brandon, there couldn't possibly be MORE Decemberists news, right? Wrong, bitch! According to their website, the band recently spent time in the studio, laying down tracks for their new album which, if everything goes as planned, will be out in September on Kill Rock Stars. An anonymous source tells us here at Pitchfork that the new tracks, "[run] the same course as 'Castaways', with a few surprises, some nifty instrumentation (strings and horns) and a couple just devastating hits. Honestly, the last track crushes!" If that ain't a ringing endorsement, well... fuck it.

Enough, fool, we can't take any more! Well, just a final note, then. As we reported yesterday, as part of Austin's annual South by Southwest festival, The Decemberists are set to perform along with a host of now-fellow Kill Rock Stars labelmates, including Jeff Hanson, The Bangs, Hella, The Reputation, and The Quails. The showcase is currently scheduled for Friday, March 14th, at Privilege Patio. Aaand, I'm spent.

Posted by Brandon Dameshek on Thu, Feb 27, 2003 at 1:00am