Smash Palace * 87 [Digipak]

Smash Palace's "87" resurrects the album that should have followed their acclaimed 1985 Epic Records debut. Combining five expertly re-recorded songs with five unreleased 1987 demos, this collection reunites the founding lineup for the first time since the '80s. The result bridges their jangle-pop origins with the decades of evolution that followed-not a sequel, but the crucial chapter that connects where they began to everything they became. The re-recorded tracks benefit from mature perspective while maintaining the raw energy of youth; the original demos offer an unvarnished glimpse into a band on the verge. Housed in a 6-panel digipak with collectible obi-strip, "87" finally answers the question fans have asked for nearly 40 years: what if their second album had actually seen the light of day?