How would you like to have your day made, and your heart broken all within the space of a single five-song EP?

That’s at least the effect that the new self-titled American Princes EP, now available to download from Reynolds Records, had on me.

The day-making part is the fact that the material, recorded in 2009 and originally intended as part of a full-length follow up to their 2008 release Other People, is finally available to enjoy.

The five tracks, representing material from each of the three songwriters in the band, vary greatly stylistically from song to song, but somehow manage to maintain a distinctive American Princes sound that fans have come to expect from them. Some of the songs will be familiar to those who caught the last handful of the band’s live performances, and hearing them again might also bring back some day-making memories.

Which leads to the heartbreaking parts.

The full-length record that the songs were intended for was never finished. The record is probably the last recorded material the band will ever release. It is also some of their most promising material, which is saying a lot considering Other People was named the best record in 2008 by Magnet Magazine.

The most heartbreaking part, though, is the fact that bass player Luke Hunsicker, who passed away last August after a two-year battle with brain cancer, is not around to celebrate the release.

There’s really no getting over that part.

The album is available as a pre-release download this week, and will officially be released on iTunes and other online outlets on July 19.

Here’s a letter from the band about the new EP.

Dear friends of American Princes,

We’re very excited to announce the release of our self-titled EP on Reynolds Records. These five songs are the band’s last studio recordings, done in the summer of 2009 with Chuck Brody, who also produced 2008’s “Other People.” Originally, the songs were meant to be our first foray into a new album, but after Luke, our bassist, became ill, we realized that these may very likely be our last songs.

We feel that the eclecticism of the material hints at what might have been our best album yet. With Collins’ Kinks-meets-Velvet-Underground, sun drenched delivery on “Waiting for the Man to Come,” Will’s crisp slice of power pop on “Your Body,” and David’s icy anxiety on “Rock n’ Roll,” this EP shows how we had broadened our conception of what our own brand of rock could be.

You can go to iTunes now to preview and pre-order the American Princes EP, or buy it today exclusively on the Reynolds Records website one week early. www.reynoldsrecco.com/store. It’ll be available for purchase on iTunes and all other digital retail sites, July 19th. We think you’ll enjoy the record as much as we enjoyed making it, and we thank you all for your support.

Yours, as always,

American Princes

Track Listing for American Princes EP

01. Waiting for the Man to Come
02. Sons of Regret
03. Self Connected
04. Rock and Roll
05. Cruel Story of Youth