Back in the late 90s, Scotland’s Arab Strap turned deep-set misanthropy into great art.

Aidan Moffat’s bleakly funny tales of listlessness and heartbreak, delivered in his inimitably weary, booze-sodden Falkirk drawl, took on a grubby majesty when set to the aching instrumentation of Malcolm Middleton, and the duo’s first two albums, The Week Never Starts Round Here (1996) and Philophobia (1998) are certified classics. Subsequent offerings – before the band split up in 2006 – were met with considerable critical acclaim and unerring adoration from the band’s fervent fanbase, but for us as for many, all the magic really lies in those first two LPs.

We’re pleased to learn, then, that both The Week and Philophobia are to be reissued on August 17. Each album is presented as a double-CD set, featuring the albums’ original tracks alongside live and radio cuts, including Peel sessions and the band’s first ever live show, recorded in Glasgow. These bonus tracks have previously seen release via the mammoth (in price as well as girth) Arab Strap box set, Scenes of A Sexual Nature, that Chemikal Underground brought out earlier this year.

Tracklists:

The Week Never Starts Round Here
CD1:
1. “Coming Down”
2. “The Clearing”
3. “Driving”
4. “Gourmet”
5. “I Work in a Saloon”
6. “Wasting”
7. “General Plea to a Girlfriend”
8. “The First Big Weekend”
9. “Kate Moss”
10. “Little Girls”
11. “Phone Me Tonight”
12. “Blood”
13. “Deeper”

CD2:
Peel Session 1 (March 1997):
1. “The Smell of Outdoor Cooking”
2. “Soaps”
3. “I Saw You”
4. “The First Big Peel Thing”
First show, recorded at King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut (October 1996):
5. “The Clearing”
6. “Driving”
7. “Gourmet”
8. “I Work in a Saloon”
9. “Wasting”
10. “General Plea to a Girlfriend”
11. “I Work in a Saloon”
12. “Phone Me Tonight”
13. “Blood”
14. The First Big Weekend”

Philophobia:
CD1:
1. “Packs of Three”
2. “Soaps”
3. “Here We Go”
4. “New Birds”
5. “One Day, After School”
6. “Islands”
7. “The Night Before the Funeral”
8. “Not Quite a Yes”
9. “Piglet”
10. “Afterwards”
11. “My Favourite Muse”
12. “I Would’ve Liked Me a Lot Last Night”
13. “The First Time You’re Unfaithful”

CD2:
Peel Session 2 (March 1998):
1. “Packs of Three”
2. “Piglet”
3. “The Night Before the Funeral”
4. “Blood”
Live at T in the Park festival (1998):
5. Kate Moss”
6. Little Girls”
7. Phone Me Tonight”
8. Blood”
9. Deeper”
10. I Would’ve Liked Me a Lot Last Night”