Fresh off the release of Stereolithic last month, 311 in partnership with Legacy Recordings are set to look back roughly 10 and 20 years for a Record Store Day release.

311’s self-titled breakthrough record from 1995 (commonly referred to as The Blue Album) has been remastered from the original analog tapes, and will be available on vinyl for the first time. Not content with releasing just one album, Legacy has also remastered the band’s 2003 release, Evolver, from the original analog recording; it’s available on individually numbered 2LP 12″ vinyl.

The fresh remastering brings new life to decade(s)-old tracks, although it’s far more noticeable on Evolver, as those songs have more layers than what the band was doing in 1995. Tracks like ”Other Side Of Things” and ”Sometimes Jacks Rule The Realms” serve as reminders of how meticulous the band was during the recording of those songs. As for 311, “Down,” “All Mixed Up,” and “Don’t Stay Home” sound great on vinyl, but deeper tracks like ”T&P Combo” and ”Sweet” sound luminous on the turntable.

My only complaint? I wish they would have printed the lyrics to the songs on the LP insert.

While these albums are Record Store Day releases, both will be available for wider distribution after 4.19.

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Dan Walsh

Music. Beer. Running. Milwaukee via Nebraska. Father of 2 awesome daughters. I use words, poorly. @dwalsh76

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