Alex Lahey – B-Grade University (Reunion Edition)

Alex Lahey announces B-Grade University (Reunion Edition), the 10-year anniversary edition of her debut EP, out July 17th on Dead Oceans, and in conjunction, shares a re-recorded version of B-Grade’s standout lead single, “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me,” this time featuring Tegan and Sara.

Lahey is also thrilled to announce a string of solo U.S. tour dates taking place in July.

Surrounding B-Grade University’s initial release, Lahey was named “Breaking Big” by Entertainment Weekly and an “Artist To Watch” by Stereogum. NYLON hailed the EP’s “18 minutes of intelligent, gracefully constructed indie rock that touches on the gray area abyss of modern romance (‘You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me’), the allure of the elite education bubble (‘Ivy League’), and the messy, surreally hilarious aftermath of a breakup (‘L-L-L-Leave Me Alone’), with a sense of place and distinctness that recalls Car Seat Headrest’s Will Toledo or Bully’s Alicia Bognanno.”

In their “Best New Track” review of “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me,” Pitchfork raved: “With levity, [Lahey’s] words roll so fast and easy, as if speed is the only way one could be this vulnerable.” Reflecting on Lahey and the track, Tegan and Sara state: “The first time I heard Alex Lahey, I remember thinking, oh—this is the artist I wish I was, but don’t quite have the lungs to pull off being. When we toured together ten years ago, I realized she wasn’t just a great songwriter and performer—she’s also weird and very funny, which somehow makes her even more of a powerhouse. Going from watching her sing ‘You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me’ from side stage to singing on it for the ‘B-Grade University’ ten-year re-release feels like a full-circle moment. If you don’t know Alex yet, congratulations—you’re about to have a new favorite. Just remember we knew her first.”

In addition to the original EP, B-Grade University (Reunion Edition) includes brand new re-recordings of “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me” and “Let’s Go Out,” alternate versions of “Wes Anderson” and “Let’s Go Out” taken from Lahey’s 2020 Between the Kitchen and the Living Room EP, plus a version of “You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me” recorded in 2017 live in-studio at triple j in Australia for their Like A Version series. A limited run vinyl version of B-Grade University (Reunion Edition) is available for pre-order now below.

I vividly remember writing this collection of songs in my childhood bedroom at my mum’s house next to a small window where I could catch glimpses of the ever expanding edges of the Melbourne city landscape in the years I lived there. I sold my trusty blue Toyota Corolla (aka the Corolls Royce) and gathered every single dollar I could from random day jobs to pay for studio time and will the project into existence.

I am not exaggerating when I say this EP completely changed my life. These songs found their place in the world in a way I could have never fathomed and have forged a life of their own over the last decade. They’ve taken me to corners of the world I could only have dreamed of seeing, let alone playing music in, given me the privilege of meeting so many people who have found their own stories in the songs and they have enabled me to keep making the next thing. I feel indebted to all of these songs and treat them with extra care and love whenever I play them live. — Alex Lahey

Lahey’s newly announced tour begins in July and finds her making stops across the West Coast, East Coast, and Midwest.

B-Grade Reunion Tour (Solo US Dates)
Thu. July 16 – San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord
Fri. July 17 – Los Angeles, CA @ Permanent Records
Sat. July 18 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
Tue. July 21 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th St. Entry
Wed. July 22 – Chicago, IL @ Schubas
Thu. July 23 – New York, NY @ Nightclub 101
Sat. July 25 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd
Sun. July 26 – Boston, MA @ Middle East (Upstairs)

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