Okay, this comes back to the top because I suck.

Last month, I said I didn't like the last half of the album because it all sounded the same. And I'm not changing my opinion that the muddy mastering makes it sound that way.

But, not long after I wrote that, I noticed that one radio station had added "Overdrive" to their playlist. I thought to myself, "What? What song is that? How could it possibly be radio-worthy?" I gave it a few spins, and while I don't think it's really radio-ready, it's not bad.

The real surprise was clicking back one track and discovering "Lonely As You", which I really fell in love with. It's got great harmonies during the chorus.

Which, once again, proves my theory about giving albums a fair chance. Sad that I have to prove it by ignoring it. (There's a Musing coming about this, I'm sure.)

I still don't like the last track, though.

A few for the singles chart.

Ash contributed the title song to the movie A Life Less Ordinary, the followup movie of the makers of Trainspotting. The movie sucked, but the soundtrack had some great songs on it. I heard this song a few years ago, but totally ignored it.

A few months ago, Ash appeared on MTV's 120 Minutes, during which most of their old videos were aired. Including this one. The video was decent, but the song hooked me. Yet I forgot about it.

It popped into my head randomly a few days ago. And now that I'm finally listening to it, it really is great. Nice harmonies, good guitar sound, cool. It's always nice to find a "new" old song.

The same station that had "Overdrive" on their playlist also had Interpol's "Obstacle 1". I heard the song, and really liked it. But I'd somehow forgotten I'd already heard of Interpol via MTV2's airing of the video for "PDA" in the fall. Something about the "PDA" video turned me off, though. I like "Obstacle 1" better, particularly the really cool kick drum beat.

By the way - Interpol is this moment's "next big thing". Just wait, in the next two months, they will be over-hyped the same way that the Strokes, the Hives, and the Vines have been. But, just like those bands, their music isn't for everyone.

I recently finally got around to compiling a Nirvana b-sides/rarities set. I've got a ton of bootlegs and discs, all of which had one or two songs worth hearing, so the compilation just made sense. While searching out info, I discovered something I hadn't heard before - Nirvana's 1987 live set on KAOS radio. It included a version of the very early Nirvana song "Anorexorcist". I was floored. It sounds so unlike Nirvana that I initially thought it was fake. It sounds like a punk-ish metal band, with someone screaming who at times sounds like Kurt Cobain. Then-drummer Aaron Burckhardt's playing is just drunken, but it works. So my compilation ended up with a "new" song.

Another surprise lately was the discovery of the new mix for U2's "Gone" on the recent Best of 1990-2000. I can't say I ever really liked much off of Pop. "Discotheque" was so campy and dopey (especially with the video). Even my U2-loving then-neighbor struggled through the album. I liked "Last Night on Earth", but mainly after seeing them play it live on the Mexico City broadcast.

I'm not sure how I feel about the other "new mixes" on the set, but this version of "Gone" is amazing. It sounds slightly reminiscent of Achtung Baby, which is probably my favorite U2 record. (I read somewhere that it's a completely different take from the one they used for Pop, but I couldn't tell you for sure.)

Back in 1991, I had a brief period where I listened to Drivin N Cryin. So brief, actually, that I didn't remember it.

One guy I worked with that summer (who was much older than I was) had run sound at a Drivin N Cryin show in Louisiana, and made a recording of it. He played it at work a few times, and loaned it to me to copy for myself so long as I swore I wouldn't trade it with anyone. I remember listening to it some, but not a whole lot, and it fell into my big box of tapes.

What did stick with me, though, was my enjoyment of the song "Fly Me Courageous", mostly from hearing it on the radio around that time. At some point a few weeks ago, it re-entered my head, forcing me to pull out an old mix tape with the album version on it.

While at a friend's house this past weekend, I noticed that the album was sitting in the pile of discs that he'd left behind when he moved to Boston. He happily let me borrow it.

On first listen, since I'm not sure I'd heard the actual album before, I was stunned by how many songs I recognized. Clearly, more songs had stuck with me than I'd realized. There I was tapping my foot to "Build a Fire" and "Rush Hour". But I was most startled by the hookiness of "Look What You've Done to Your Brother".

The production is a little thin and open. It definitely sounds dated. But it's a nice straight ahead rock record. And, somehow, it sounds good.

I'm wondering if I should try and track down that old tape.