Music

The Constantines leak details of more upcoming reunion shows and reissue

by Mark Teo

We thought we were over high-profile band reunions (thanks, the Pixies). We really did. That is, of course, until we heard that the Bry Webb-led Constantines were reuniting this summer. In a blog post, Webb outlined that they’d be playing shows this summer in anticipation of the Shine A Light reissue—but until now, the only show announced was Toronto’s Field Trip.

Doing press for his forthcoming solo album—Free Will will drop on May 20 via Idée Fixe records—Webb also leaked that the band will be playing several more dates: Namely, festivals in Peterborough, Sackville, and Ottawa. While he didn’t name the festivals, it’s a fair bet that the Cons will travel to Sappyfest—no surprise, considering Cons guitarist Steven Lambke was a one-time Sackville dweller. That, and, according to Vish Khanna’s Kreative Kontrol podcast, the band reconnected at the festival.

Webb also reveals that it was Lambke who first reached out with an email about reissuing Shine A Light.

“For me, it just occupies a place of joy and goodness and so I just want to reconnect with it rather than let it go. Life’s too short,” Webb said, of the Constantines decision to reunite. “The right opportunities just jumped up over the last year and we all reconnected at SappyFest. Deloro, Dallas’ band, and Baby Eagle—everybody was out playing at SappyFest [two years ago].”

He also said that Shine A Light, for its 11th anniversary, will be reissued in June via Sub Pop in the U.S. (“I believe the date is June 10 or June 20th,” says Webb.) In Canada, it’ll be handled by You’ve Changed, the imprint managed by Lambke and Daniel Romano.

Listen to the remainder of the interview—where he talks about his pragmatic musical upbringing, Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, and yes, the Cons breakup and eventual reunion—right here.