Label: Run For Cover

Reissued 11/14/2025, Originally released 2003

From the maniacal opening notes and carnival barker howl that launch the album, The Ugly Organ wasted no time searing itself into a listener's ears and quickly established Cursive as a musical force with which to be reckoned. A self aware examination of artistic constraints (or lack thereof), relationships, sex, and the intersection of all three, The Ugly Organ wowed critics and audiences alike with its cerebral, cathartic blend of songs. Fiercely intelligent and cohesive – the liner notes laid the songs out like a play, complete with stage directions – across its diverse sonic landscape, the album landed Cursive on the Sunday Arts & Leisure section cover of The New York Times (which also called it "a marvelous collection of riddles and left turns, conceived as a single piece of musical theater") and earned accolades from Rolling Stone ("a brilliant leap forward"), Entertainment Weekly, Billboard, Alternative Press, MAGNET ("The best punk record you'll hear all year"), Esquire, and SPIN, among many others, as well as a place on numerous year-end best lists. The Ugly Organ feels as vibrant and vital today as it did upon release more than 20 years ago. A landmark album, it not only catapulted Cursive from the simmering indie underground to the forefront of a genre, but also served to inspire a host of young bands in its wake.

Track listing:

1. The Ugly Organist    
   
2. Some Red Handed Slight Of Hand    
   
3. Art Is Hard    
   
4. The Recluse    
   
5. Herald! Frankenstein    
   
6. Butcher The Song    
   
7. Driftwood: A Fairy Tale    
   
8. A Gentleman Caller    
   
9. Harold Weathervein    
   
10. Bloody Murderer    
    
11. Sierra    
    
12. Staying Alive