The Electronic Anthology Project began as the idea of Built to Spill bassist Brett Nelson. Always having loved and been greatly influenced by 1980s new wave music, he wondered what a guitar-driven band like Built to Spill would sound like if made a little more new wave (circa 1982). The EP was released on March 19, 2010.[1][2]
A second collection of re-imagined tracks were issued for Record Store Day on April 21, 2012. This time the release featured songs by indie rock band Dinosaur Jr.[3] The album, called simply, "The Electronic Anthology Project of Dinosaur Jr.", featured synthesizers and programmed beats by Nelson and vocals by Dinosaur Jr.'s J Mascis.[4] There followed a collaboration with Death Cab for Cutie, with a re-imagining of two songs.[5][6]