BEST OF EVERCLEAR, T

Audio Mixers: Art Alexakis; Kurt Brummer; Jim Rondinelli; Neal Avron; Andy Wallace; Randy Staub ; Tom Lord-Alge; Brian Malouf. By the time Everclear hit the airwaves in 1994, the word "grunge" had already been so heavily engrained into pop-culture consciousness that even soccer moms and corporate dads were hip to it. A step away from being used in fast-food ads, the term was becoming dated even back then. Perhaps that's why some dismissed Everclear's guitar-heavy early work as too Nirvana-esque. Although Everclear did hail from the Northwest, the band's impeccable musicianship, clever hooks, infectious melodies, and singer Art Alexakis's gifted voice set the band apart from the grunge of the day. If anything, the TEN YEARS GONE anthology proves that incredible songwriting stands on its own in any genre. Over the course of a decade, songwriter Alexakis composed insightful and unpretentious songs that did not compromise substance, despite acceptance by a Top 40 audience. Against the backdrop of fuzzed-out, upbeat, and roaring pop-rock, Alexakis's lyrics display a unique kind of poignancy, offering an intimacy often missing in mainstream music. TEN YEARS GONE compiles the finest from Everclear's catalog, including the wonderfully nostalgic "Santa Monica" and the spirited "Local God" (from 1996's ROMEO & JULIET soundtrack). The collection also features two unreleased songs, "Sex with a Movie Star (Good Witch Gone Bad)" and "The New Disease," the latter being an epic rocker (with bells). Everclear's music could feasibly be called "post-grunge," but it's probably more accurately (and simply) labeled "great rock & roll."