LAGWAGON - Double Plaidinum: Reissue 2xLP

Label: Fat Wreck Chords

The recent reissue of Lagwagon’s 1997 album “Double Plaidinum” was not the one that started it all for the band, and not that helped pioneer a sound and a movement. “Double Plaidinum” is, in fact, the fourth album from the seminal Santa Barbara punks, and the first to feature current drummer Dave Raun and guitarist Chris Rest. Start to finish, however, the thirteen tracks that make up the original release are arguably the band’s best.

The remastered tracks all sound great; crisp and clean with punchier guitars and full sounds emanating from the rhythm section. In short, the way that they were intended to be heard. The band really did a great job adding tunes that sound like they could have easily appeared on the original album, and supported it with a few alternate versions that are truly more than just acoustic covers but are in fact dynamic reinterpretations. If you’re only going to spring for one reissue from the Lagwagon set, make it “Double Plaidinum.”