Damnesia is an album by the punk rock band Alkaline Trio, released July 12, 2011 through their label Heart & Skull, a joint venture with Epitaph Records.[1] A primarily acoustic album, it consists of "a selection of beloved fan favorites selected from the group's extensive catalogue and presented in an intimate semi-unplugged format".[1] The album also includes two new songs, "Olde English 800" and "I Remember a Rooftop", as well as a cover version of the Violent Femmes' "I Held Her in My Arms".[1][2] A music video consisting of studio footage was released for the song "Clavicle", and the band has embarked a fifteenth-anniversary United States tour in support of the album.[1][3]
Damnesia was released to mostly positive reviews. AbsolutePunk gave it a rating of 7.5/10, stating that "Damnesia satiates the appetite fans have for new material, while proving that an old band can still do new tricks.".[4]Big Cheese gave it a rating of 8/10, stating that the album took a "mellower approach" than the band's previous effort.[6] However, Allmusic gave it 3/5,[5] whilst Blare Magazine also gave it the same score, saying that "there’s the odd inclusion where those old breakup lyrics, slowed down to unplugged-tempo, don’t have the same ring".[7]
