NUM201
Album cover

Codeine

When I See The Sun

From 1990 to 1994, New York City’s Codeine were making somnambulant waves on a musical landscape reeling from Sub Pop’s better known exports. The label’s first and most significant foray out of what had become the signature Sub Pop sound, Codeine were an anomaly among their loud “lo-fi” and super-compressed alt-rock peers, preferring an understated, elegant, and above all beautiful approach that recalled the slowness of opiate drug states. Codeine’s glacial tempos were never an end in themselves. Rather, the lethargic pace reflected a deliberate and meticulous approach to songcraft—an emphasis on restraint and space which amounted to a punk provocation and an entirely different path toward catharsis than the prevailing scream therapies of the day. 1991’s Frigid Stars LP, 1992’s Barely Real, and 1994’s The White Birch received much critical praise upon release, but Codeine dissolved before any of the hype carried over into the so-called “slow core” movement. All three albums have been subjected to our notoriously elaborate packaging and include in-depth liner notes and scads of unpublished photos. Faithfully restored from the original masters, each album is accompanied by a plethora of singles, demos, live recordings, and Peel Sessions—packaged as a double LP along with a CD of the same material. Additionally, an ultra deluxe box set of all three albums is available. The box set includes a 5’ x 1’ fold-out poster of the band’s complete discography and a tidy slipcase to house all three albums.

Track List

  1. Codeine Gravel Bed
  2. Codeine Pick Up Song
  3. Codeine 3 Angels
  4. Codeine New Year's
  5. Codeine Second Chance
  6. Codeine Cave-In
  7. Codeine Cigarette Machine
  8. Codeine Old Things
  9. Codeine Pea
  10. Codeine Castle (SOS Demo)
  11. Codeine Skeletons (SOS Demo)
  12. Codeine Three Angels (SOS Demo)
  13. Codeine Corner Store (SOS Demo)
  14. Codeine Summer Dresses (SOS Demo)
  15. Codeine Pea (Acoustic)
  16. Codeine Second Chance (Demo)
  17. Codeine Pickup Song (Demo)
  18. Codeine Cave-In (Demo)
  19. Codeine Kitchen (Demo)
  20. Codeine Realize
  21. Codeine Jr
  22. Codeine Barely Real
  23. Codeine Hard To Find
  24. Codeine W.
  25. Codeine Promise Of Love
  26. Codeine JR (Dessau Demo)
  27. Codeine Hydroplane (Live)
  28. Codeine Wird (Dessau Demo)
  29. Codeine I Wonder (Dessau Demo)
  30. Codeine Tom (Dessau Demo)
  31. Codeine A l'Ombre de Nous
  32. Codeine Cracked in Two
  33. Codeine Realize (Alternate Take)
  34. Codeine Broken-Hearted Wine
  35. Codeine Sea
  36. Codeine Loss Leader
  37. Codeine Vacancy
  38. Codeine Kitchen Light
  39. Codeine Washed Up
  40. Codeine Tom
  41. Codeine Ides
  42. Codeine Wird
  43. Codeine Smoking Room
  44. Codeine Median (Peel Session)
  45. Codeine Loss Leader (Peel Session)
  46. Codeine Sure Looks That Way (Peel Session)
  47. Codeine D (Live)
  48. Codeine Atmosphere
  49. Codeine Something New
  50. Codeine Ides (Demo)
  51. Codeine Smoking Room (Demo)
  52. Codeine D