It’s a crime that this album is no longer in print or even available for download. If you can find it, get yourself a copy before its too late.

You can still find a few used and overpriced new copies on Amazon...

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This was the album that was going to make or break Faith No More. After the enormous critical and popular success of “The Real Thing”, they could have easily delivered more of the same, writing another “Epic” and making everyone happy. Instead, they delivered a heavy, complex, fuck you of an album that confused the hell out of everyone at the time. Only now in retrospect is it considered one of the most influential albums of the 90’s by many in the music industry.

Though it holds only a handful of my absolute favorite Faith No More tracks, there’s a certain insane energy to it all that makes it a joy to listen to again and again (except the 1 note joke of a song “Be Aggressive” which I skip every time).

And now I’m off to see them perform for the first time in the US for more than 12 years tonight. I can’t wait!!!

STANDOUT TRACKS: “Caffine”, “Midlife Crisis”, “Smaller and Smaller”

MORE FROM FAITH NO MORE

This week’s featured band helped rekindle my old relationship with Curve. This was a band I found quite accidentally after picking up their EP compilation "Pubic Fruit" for a mere three bucks off a used CD rack in the back of a comic book shop many, many years ago. This type of purchase was always hit or miss, but well worth it when you discovered the occasional gem like this one... an album that not only introduced me to Curve, but other bands of their ilk, like Lush and My Bloody Valentine.

Revisiting all their albums now I still think “Cuckoo” stands out as their best overall. And it’s the one occupying the most time in my CD player this week.

Unfortunately for us all, it doesn’t seem to be in print anymore for purchase or for download. A travesty if you ask me. Fortunately, there are still a few sellers on Amazon carrying it. Some for less than three bucks. Get it while you can.

STANDOUT TRACKS: “Crystal”, “Unreadable Communication” & “Superblaster”

MORE FROM CURVE

I’ve used to be a huge early Soundgarden fan, so when I heard about the possibility of a long overdue reunion, I couldn’t help but dig out all their albums for old time sake. And the one that still stands up the best for me is “Louder than Love”. Big, slow, and full of raw energy, this is Soundgarden at their very best. Once this one is in, it doesn’t come out for at least a few hours. Unfortunately I can’t say the same for their subsequent albums.

I never completely got into “Badmotorfinger”, “Superunknown” was overlong with too many filler tracks (“Spoonman”? Really?) and the less said about “Down on the Upside” the better. The steady decline in quality makes their eventual break-up seem like the right thing in retrospect... though, besides his brief stint with the guys from Rage Against the Machine, Cornell would not fair much better on his own. I really hope the reunion is a return to form and not just a nostalgic cash in.

STANDOUT TRACKS: “Loud Love”, “The Ugly Truth” & “No Wrong No Right”

Other Soundgarden Albums

I have to start by admitting that Chuck Mosley is most definitely an acquired taste... a love ‘em or hate ‘em type of vocalist. You either get him... or you don’t. And to be honest it took me a few spins of Faith No More’s “Introduce Yourself” before I really got him myself.

When I first saw “Epic” on MTV, I excitedly ran out and bought up the only album of Faith No More’s I could find only to be confused by what I heard. This sounded nothing like the spastic guy with the insanely good voice I saw on the TV. In fact it sounded like quite the opposite. But, I had spent my hard earned money on it so damnit, I was going to learn to like it. And I’m glad I stuck with it, because today I find Chuck Mosely to be one of the more interesting (and under appreciated) voices in rock, routinely overshadowed by his Faith No More successor Mike Patton.

“Will Rap Over Hard Rock for Food” is Chuck’s return to music after a more than 10 year hiatus. The title itself is a cheeky nod to his admitted influence on the rap rock bands that followed in the 90’s like Limp Bizkit and Korn, who’s Jonathan Davis makes a guest appearance on the album. Thankfully Chuck doesn’t try to relive the past and give us an album full of rap rock rehashes, opting instead to do what he does best... his own thing.

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Tractor”, “Nameless” & “We Care A Lot” (A brand new version with Faith No More’s Roddy Bottum)