On July 24, 2007, two sisters from Calgary released their fifth studio album The Con. It went on to become one of Tegan and Sara’s best received albums, with high praise from both fans and critics alike. A decade after its release, celebrate the anniversary with these ten little known facts.

 

1. Written during a time of turmoil. Both Tegan and Sara were going through some serious personal struggles while writing The Con. Sara was struggling with getting her American-born girlfriend a working visa to come to Canada, while Tegan had just broken up with her girlfriend of five years. They were also mourning the death of their grandmother, who the twins say was like a second mother to them.

2. Spilt 50/50. Each twin wrote seven songs for the album, with each releasing a single. Sara’s “Back in Your Head” was released first, followed by Tegan’s “The Con”.

3. Big reveal. They announced the album on MySpace.

 

4. Inspired by Against Me!. The songs Tegan wrote for the album were inspired by Against Me!’s album Against Me! as the Eternal Cowboy.

5. Post-Katy Perry. Before the album, the sisters were touring with Katy Perry.

6. Name change.  “The Con” was tentatively called “Encircled Me” and “Like O, Like H” was previously called “SOS”.

7.Guests galore. The album featured loads of guest musicians including Chris Walla and Jason McGerr of Death Cab for Cutie, Matt Sharp of Weezer and Hunter Burgan of AFI.

8.Canadian gold. The album became certified gold in Canada quickly after its release, with an impressive 216, 000 copies being sold in the US.

9. Canadian Grammy nominee! The album was nominated for the Juno for Alternative Album of the Year as well a spot on the Polaris Music Prize longlist.

10. Special anniversary release. Today, the sisters announced the release of The Con X: Covers, a new album featuring 14 of their favourite artists covering all 14 songs from the original album. It will be released October 13, 2017, with net proceeds being donated to the Tegan and Sara Foundation to support LGBTQ girls and women.

 

Tegan and Sara return to play the album in full at the Jubilee October 31st. Get tickets HERE!

 

 

Filed under: Anniversary, Tegan and Sara, The Con