Mudhoney - Under a Billion Suns

There was once a band so edgy and sarcastic that it was hand-picked to appear in one of the most underappreciated films in cinematic history. There was once a band so ahead of the curve that it left its "revolutionary" Seattle counterparts Nirvana and Pearl Jam in the dust. Ladies and gentleman, that band is back -- and its name is Mudhoney. You may remember these guys from their earth shattering performance in Chris Farley's Black Sheep -- they were the strung out rockers who pushed Mike Donnelly onto the stage after they mistook him for a gubernatorial candidate. More importantly, you may remember them from the cloudy, yet glorious days of Seattle grunge rock. Mudhoney's new album, Under a Billion Suns, might not be enough to make flannel shirts and disgustingly dirty jeans retro chic, but it’s a painfully enjoyable collection of classically pissed-off songs. Lead singer Mark Arm says it best in the ironic romp "It Is Us" when he belts out, "Sing a song of cheer / happy days are here again!" You don't have to dig the band's sarcastic sense of humor to enjoy this record. The razor sharp guitar parts and nut-crunching drum lines give the songs more than enough to stand on their own musically. They even throw some horns into the mix just to get weird. But half the fun of listening Mudhoney is joining them in their psychotically indifferent lyrical rants. The two strongest cuts on the album, "Hard On For War" and "Blindspots," make for one giant middle finger to the world. It takes a clever bunch of guys to inspire so much joy with music this dark and snotty. Welcome back, boys. We missed you. [www.subpop.com]