Event Description : In February 2008, Asian Man Records released a 10th Anniversary reissue of the band's 1998 full length, Goddamnit. The disc was remixed and remastered, with 4 bonus tracks from their 1996 demo tape added, and the album was repackaged with new artwork and a feature length DVD documentary about the band's early days. Predictably, the release caused quite a bit of excitement for long-time followers of the group.
On Saturday, February 9, 2008, the band posted a message on their MySpace page explaining that they had been in the studio for three weeks working on the new album without revealing a release date or title. The band later announced via their fan club, the Blood Pact, that their upcoming album, titled Agony & Irony, would be released on July 1st, 2008. [2] As a gift for members, they made a new song titled "In Vein" available as an exclusive. On April 4, they posted the song on their MySpace for 24 hours.
An episode of the MTV show The Hills featuring the band aired on May 5, 2008.
A contest ("Settle The Score"), was announced May 6, 2008, encouraged fans to download sheet music of "Love Love Kiss Kiss" from the official website and send Alkaline Trio footage of their interpretation of the song before it is released by the band. Entries are currently being judged by the band and prizes for the winner include a feature on the band website, tour tickets, VIP passes and an opportunity to play the song with the band in a jam session. Footage of the jam session will be featured on the website.
As expected, the band released Agony & Irony on July 1, 2008. First week sales for the album placed Alkaline Trio at number 13 on the Billboard album charts, making it the highest the band has ever charted to date.
|