No matter how vehemently your inborn cynicism may disagree, life is actually full of shit that’s worth remembering. I mean, hell, every major holiday is borne out of the simple devotion to remember something, right? No matter how strange, depressing, or fucked up that “something” may be?
Good ol’ Sub Pop seems to understands this sentiment, which is probably why they decided to reach back 22 years and remaster and re-release Jeremy Enigk’s wonderful(ly dramatic!) debut LP, Return of the Frog Queen.
The record, which has been out of print since its original 1996 pressing (god, it’s scary to think that was over 20 years ago), is currently available for pre-order through Sub Pop, and will be available to all on vinyl come May 25 (runs of limited purple are pre-order only), CD, and digital. It’s also worth noting that the “new” version of the album will contain five bonus tracks (digital only) from a 1996 live session that Enigk did with Seattle’s The End radio station.
Now, I know you hate remembering things, but surely you recall that Enigk was the proverbial talisman of well-celebrated indie rock band Sunny Day Real Estate, who saw their rollercoaster-ish heyday run its course from 1993 to roughly 2000 or so. Frog Queen, which featured a 21-piece orchestral backing and represented a fairly radical stylistic deviation from Sunny’s “emo-variant” soundscape, was recorded in 1996 during the band’s first (but certainly not last) messy breakup. It’s a hell of a record; and, given its “indisputable innovation [on] the world of 90s indie rock,” has quite possibly inspired the likes of modern day “chamber pop” junkies like Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, the Decemberists, etc.
For a mindful (if not nostalgic) refresher of Enigk’s plucky debut solo effort, check out the vocally epic “Shade and the Black Hat” down below. And unless you want to wait another 20+ years for its next vinyl pressing, don’t forget to put your pre-order(s) in for the new, sure-to-be-memorable remastered album.
Return of the Frog Queen remastered tracklisting:
01. Abegail Anne
02. Return of the Frog Queen
03. Lewis Hollow
04. Lizard
05. Carnival
06. Call Me Steam
07. Explain
08. Shade and the Black Hat
09. Fallen Heart
10. Abegail Anne*
11. Return of the Frog Queen*
12. Lizard*
13. Carnival*
14. Explain*
*The End Sessions CD and
digital-only bonus tracks