Every year the recording industry looks back on the many classics or out-of-print material that they have stored away, and they pick the top few that will best cash in on current fads. Padding these out with bonus tracks and other ephemera that warrant higher sticker prices, they repackage the albums and make us buy it again.

But many of these reissues are worth the expanded price, and sometimes it is a previously hard-to-find album that is finally released. Here’s a selection of the must-have reissues of 2005:

DJ Shadow Entroducing First released: 1996 Reason reissued: It’s approaching its 10th year anniversary. Also, rap is very big right now. Reason you should pick it up: Entroducing is inarguably the greatest instrumental hip-hop album ever made, and DJ Shadow himself has been unable to top it. The album marked the first time that instrumental DJing had been attempted on an album length scale, and is a huge display of talent, especially given that at the time digital recording did not exist and the turntabling had to be recorded through hundreds of analog takes. Not only innovative, the forgotten samples that make up the album also make for a beautiful, hypnotic, and exhausting listen, perfect for pretty much any activity - from freestyling to homework to making out. The deluxe reissue comes with a lavish booklet (containing portions of the forthcoming 33 & 1/3 book on the album, as well as reflections from Shadow) and a bonus disc containing worthwhile remixes, demos, and unreleased cuts. Re-release date: It’s already available.

Tarkio I Guess I Was Hoping For Something More (above) and Sea Songs For Landlocked Sailors First released: 1998 and 1999 Reason reissued: Because Colin Meloy (of Decemberists fame) was the lead singer, and the Decemberists are one of the hottest groups in indie rock. Reason you should pick them up: Because, especially on Sea Songs, Tarkio was nearly as good as the Decemberists. Perfect pop songs like “Weight of the World” comingle with beautiful acoustic numbers like “Tristan And Iseult”, alt-country hoedowns like “Sister Nebraska” and even an early version of the Decemberists song “My Mother Was A Chinese Trapeze Artist”. Tarkio was mainly an alt-country band, as opposed to the Decemberists (who have been described as “Victorian folk-pop”) but they are just as talented, and the songs are still quite good. Plus, the evolution of Colin Meloy’s songwriting to his current unique style is exciting to hear. It’s not coming out until the fall, though, so details about bonus tracks are sketchy. However, a high quality soundboard bootleg of a Tarkio show from 1998 has been circulating for some time, and may show up on a bonus disc. Re-release date: This fall on Kill Rock Stars Records.

Neutral Milk Hotel On Avery Island and In The Aeroplane Over The Sea (above) First released: 1996 and 1998 Reason reissued: Both have been out-of-print in Britain for quite some time. Reason you should pick them up: Neutral Milk Hotel are already indie legends, and these, their sole albums, are the reason why. Mysterious, deeply affecting, and sometimes nearly free-associative lyrics, utterly unique instrumentation and the distinctive voice of Jeff Mangum make these instant classics that deserve the reissue treatment. Given that Neutral Milk Hotel only made these two albums, it is the bonus material that is causing the most buzz. All of their demos and bootlegs are widely available through the internet, but official release could make these often brilliant versions available to the non-obsessed masses. Also, there is the Holy Grail of NMH fandom, the 9 or so studio recordings of unreleased fan favorites like “Ferris Wheel on Fire” and “Oh Sister” that were recorded for the Aeroplane sessions but never released. Sadly, though, it looks as though the bonus material will be limited if present at all. We can only wait for the US reissues, likely to come on the 10th anniversary of both albums, for a more impressive package. Re-release date: September 5th, 2005 in the UK on Domino Records.