The full story

It took several hours, but Stars and their label, Arts & Crafts, posted an explanation for the surprise release of In Our Bedroom After the War — and it’s brilliant. And I have to say, historic. It’s the first case I know of where a label has decided to release an album in its digital version months ahead of the physical CD release. They know the record will be leaked before the release date, so they may as well leak it themselves — and make some cash in the process. It’s no coincidence the record is already No. 1 on the iTunes Canada chart. (See related article in Pitchfork.)