RILO KILEY - Rilo Kiley LP (Colour Vinyl)

Label: Little Record Co

In January 1998, Rilo Kiley played their first show at a Silverlake nightclub called Spaceland. If they were nervous, it didn’t show. “Between songs they were charming, smart and funny,” recalls The Kids in the Hall comedian Dave Foley, who happened to catch the set. “During songs they were brilliant.” Smitten, he offered to pay for a demo recording, which the band accepted. Many of the songs from the Foley-funded session would go on to form Rilo Kiley’s self-titled 1999 debut (later released with a slightly altered tracklist as The Initial Friend EP).

For the first time in 21 years, Rilo Kiley are reissuing that record, which had previously been available only on CD and sold at the band’s earliest gigs. The album serves as a gateway into their discography, finding the indie-rock quartet at the earliest stages of discovering its sound. For everyone who cherished the band’s guidance — through heartaches, through acid trips, through self-acceptance — Rilo Kiley's self-titled debut serves as a reminder of what they accomplished, a bedrock of vulnerability that helped shape future indie-rock acts.