Barely Real

Barely Real
EP by Codeine
Released	November 1992 (1992-11)
Recorded	March–July 1992[1]
Genre	Slowcore
Length	24:49
Label	Sub Pop
Producer	Mike McMackin, Codeine
Codeine chronology
Frigid Stars LP (1990) Barely Real (1992) The White Birch (1994)
Singles from Barely Real
"Realize" Released: July 1, 1992

Barely Real is the 1992 extended play (EP) by the American indie rock band Codeine. After releasing their previous album Frigid Stars LP in 1990, the group accepted an invitation from the quartet Bastro to tour in Europe in 1991. Following the tour, the group was invited to record a single for Sub Pop Singles Club and attempted to record their follow-up album The White Birch in 1992. The recording sessions proved to be disastrous for the group since they found themselves often with unusable tracks over several different studios. As Codeine could not record enough material for a full-length album, they decided to release what tracks they had as an EP.

The music on Barely Real continued the slowcore music style of their previous album. Barely Real also featured contributions from guest musicians such as Jon Fine of Bitch Magnet playing additional guitar on the song "Jr" and a piano cover of the song "Wird" performed by David Grubbs. Following the recording sessions, the group's drummer Chris Brokaw left the group being replaced by Doug Scharin.

Barely Real had one single ("Realize") released and was initially released in Germany through Sub Pop, followed by a release in the United States in 1993. The band toured North America to promote the release which included an opening spot for Mazzy Star and their first shows in Canada. The album received praise from the Alternative Press and Melody Maker on its initial release, with the latter calling the work "25 minutes of snowblind glory". The EP was reissued by The Numero Group in 2012, including various unreleased songs and new material. The reissue was acclaimed Spin and Pitchfork Media, with the latter describing the release as "masterful".