On October 28, 2003, Rhino Records housed together the mammoth 100-song boxed set No Thanks! The '70s Punk Rebellion, which was another in a line of comprehensive era singles collections that also documented the best rock songs of the 1950s as well as some of the more obscure artifacts from the psychedelic garage rock phase of the 1960s and early 1970s. However, the punk rock boxed set was more than just a sampler of what was great about music in the 1970s, and it instead proved as the final word on where modern alternative rock found its roots. They captured the raw power and DIY aesthetic down pat in a blaze of significant rock songs from a wide array of artists, from the working class English youths who craved rebellion to the New York-based pioneers who rocked CBGB's and the American outfits who dared to carry the torch from edgier peers. Because Rhino mainly drew from punk rock from 1976-1979, which was a more explosive period for the genre than one might initially think, the set was easily one of the greater compilations made available by the label.

Now, intentional or no, Rhino has released the follow-up boxed set, only this time its called LEFT OF THE DIAL: DISPATCHES FROM THE '80s UNDERGROUND.

Surely you know the history of punk rock in the 1970s, and how it was an era that only lasted as long as their most pivotal three-chord wrecking crews. Many indeed say the punk era ended up dying with The Sex Pistols. However, I would argue that this is simply another really bad misjudgment, alongside the typical view of vintage punk from people who were scowling down on the youthful generation at the time. Whereas the messy, unpredictable side of punk might have been a casualty, the genre lived on in the form of alternative rock, thanks largely in part to the advent of new wave as well as the unforgettable genre-busting bravado displayed by '70s punk priests The Clash on their landmark "London Calling" LP. As a result, the subgenre of post-punk was born, and in time the alternative rock scene of the 1980s even expanded out to include some art performers, jangle-pop, industrial, grunge, and even a generous portion of mainstream artists, like U2 and Peter Gabriel, whose music was blessed with enough depth to cross over to college radio. And there were still sounds of punk rock fury to be found in the 1980s, with most bands getting more ferocious or more juvenile with the style.

Of course the 1980s is an era signified by a glut of artists who had that decade's society eating out of their palms. Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, Guns N' Roses, and many others reached humongous apexes that year, and they were indeed the focal points of 1980s music. Also, one can't help but forget all the endless amounts of iffy new wave pop groups, pre-fabricated teen sensations, stomach-churning corporate rock, and what seemed to be the biggest hair metal explosion one could ever ask for. Those were what indeed, unfortunately, encapsulated a lot of music in the 1980s.

You couldn't find the type of music that mattered mostly in the mainstream...you'd have to go underground!

So the independent bands from America to Europe and so forth instead found whatever audiences they could find on college radio. And indeed, some of the most respectable rock troops of the whole 10 years got the attention they couldn't get anywhere else from either the masses or the moguls. As a result, an album like "Tim" by The Replacements, which contains the song that gave this compilation its namesake, couldn't get past #183 on the album charts, but was #1 in our hearts. That was because it spoke to us at a time when most music hadn't even that much of a voice to start with. In a perfect world, "Kiss Me On The Bus" probably would've had a fighting chance as a pop single.

The 1980s eventually became kinder towards a glut of the acts that appear on this compilation, as was definitely the case with the likes of bands including R.E.M., The Pretenders, The Cure, Depeche Mode, New Order, and a few others. However, they were once bands that weren't easily household names from the get-go. Nobody heard the mumbling, brooding "Radio Free Europe" in 1983 and thought that those Athens boys would eventually be filling our airwaves in 1987 and 1988 with such surprisingly potent pop singles as "The One I Love" and "Stand" (despite the "Murmur" album's surprising climb to the Top 40 over the course of 1983). In 1985, the Red Hot Chili Peppers were just some crazy band who threw all their clothes, except for their socks, on the fire and got George Clinton to produce a record for them, and now they are superstars. Even a band like Faith No More, who during 1987 were as under the radar as you could imagine, would rise up to become one of the early hip-hop/metal fusion bands ever to become adored by the scene.

Taking into consideration the fact that most of the bands had eventually become legendary on their own terms (The Pretenders found their calling surprisingly fast thanks to the crossover success of "Brass In Pocket"), basically every single band on this collection may seem familiar to you now, but even then people a lot of people weren't following their ears to these tunes when they first came out during the decade. To be frank, only those who lived through the decade might possibly remember who The Passions and The Lyres were, because not even I, one who has attempted to pick up on the most vital alternative bands in the past in an effort to school myself, could vacantly recall anything from them.

And that's the beauty of the Rhino box sets. They remember the bands so you won't have to.

Now understand that before I go any further into the contents of this boxed set, individually critiquing each of the four discs and providing thoughts on the overall packaging, there are some obvious gripes to be dealt with. Particularly, as I mentioned, the last Rhino box set was mainly drawing selections from a four-year-long point in time, and these were all mainly short songs, so many acts got represented more than once. However, LEFT OF THE DIAL is only 82 songs, 82 bands/artists, and basically runs a similar length and spans an equal amount of CDs. This means that many bands were neglected and left behind, and indeed a catchall fifth disc would easily prove of some worth. In the liner notes, for instance, we learn that bands such as Let's Active, Wire Party, and Oingo Boingo were considered but eventually left off the final roll call. And even then, I was still wondering what happened to Romeo Void, Dramarama, The Fall, Shonen Knife, Marshall Crenshaw, The Housemartins, The Waterboys, Cowboy Junkies, The Mekons, The Godfathers, Payola$, The Sparks, Michelle Shocked, Galaxie 500, The Chills, The Plimsouls, and at least several others who arguably hold some sort of sway in this ever-so-expansive and influential field.

Still, as you continue to read on, make particular note of the different musical genres you can spot as I review each of the discs from start to stop. This sort of variety alone makes the boxed set as vital as it could've been had someone thrown in a bonus disc.

The first disc opens well enough with R.E.M. and Radio Free Europe, presented in the re-recorded "Murmur"-trailing single version which eventually peaked at #78 in the U.S. in 1983. Michael Stipe, at the time, was simply a songwriter inspired by cutting and pasting lyrics together and had a delivery that was devil-may-care hoarse, which may explain why the song seems so unintelligible (Stipe would later be amazed at the widespread fan-oriented attention of those clamoring to know meaning of the tune). However, what you can make out from Stipe's mouth in the song is nothing less than anthemic ("Calling out in transit/To Radio Free Europe") and the band was simply a blessing amongst the rock scene, with Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Bill Berry taking cues from folk music and the British Invasion in the song's delivery, which builds from driving drums and solid bass lines to a rousing chorus, where the vocals and guitars get rougher and more electronic, and to a glorious bridge where Buck delivers a brief, shiningly melodic solo. Regarded as one of their all-time greats, this is a song that holds up even 20 years after the start.

Paul Weller and The Jam provide the follow-up track, Going Underground, which was in actuality perhaps the only #1 hit you'll find on this album, as it topped the UK charts in 1980. This is easily the band that in many ways became the heirs to the garage rock throne etched out by The Kinks and The Who in the 1960s, and a truly powerful trio whose blend of sharp chords and disgust at the societal acceptance of a corrupt government is felt all too closely know on Green Day's recent "American Idiot" LP. Far from being merely the anthem of this collection, it merits inclusion simply because that The Jam, as shown on the previous boxed set, were quite a vital band in the English scene and deserved whatever glories they got. The same goes for The Cure, represented here by the underrated A Forest, their welcome U.K. commercial breakthrough from the exact same year The Jam scored their smash. A sparse, gloomy instrumentation does nothing to hide the fact that this is, indeed, a song upbeat in tempo (it's melody sounds a bit like cold-blooded surf rock), yet quite downbeat lyrically (Robert Smith sings of being led into the woods by a nymph but left betrayed and alone in the end). However, given the fact that this song would always be treated most like an epic in concert, it builds and breaks down with precision as well, especially with Simon Gallup's thumping bass breakaway.

Moving from Woking and Crawley to the shores of San Francisco, we touch upon The Dead Kennedys and Holiday In Cambodia, taken in its "Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables" LP version. A band that always delivered potent, at times darkly funny blasts of social satire and political rebellion, this song opens in a manner uncommon of most punk artists: East Bay Ray unleashes muted, echoing effects from his guitar until the bass kicks in and the song goes into throttle, with a solid series of reverberating '60s-style riffs and Jello Biafra's cackling, acidic vocals on the snooty higher class coping with life under Pol Pot ("You'll work harder with a gun in your back/For a bowl of rice a day!/Slave for soldiers 'til you starve/Then your head is skewered on a stake"). In one of the most bizarre incidents I have seen in punk history, 3/4 of the band, save for the consistently anti-establishment Biafra, were so hurt that they couldn't feature the song in a Levi's commercial, they sued ol' Eric just to wrestle the entire DK catalog away from his Alternative Tentacles label. I think it worked, as the Manifesto releases illustrate, but thank God they haven't exposed me to the sight of people modeling jeans next to lyrics such as "It's time to taste what you must fear/Right Guard will not help you here."

Much of disc one will bring back hearty amounts of nostalgia for many, particularly in the sounds of all the cult bands and obscure rock outfits that make up the remainder of this set. And they all contribute distinct, alternating musical styles. The Passions contribute an infectious slice of jangle-pop with I'm In Love With A German Film Star until The Replacements, heralded by Bob Stinson's resourceful lead and Paul Westerberg's trademark "screw this take" vocals, come on like shambling pub rockers with the stomping 1984 gem I Will Dare, featuring Peter Buck of R.E.M. once again getting the solo bridge highlight. Boston's Mission of Burma and their offbeat pop rocker That's When I Reach For My Revolver ("That's when I reach for my revolver/That's when it all gets blown away") is tempered in particular by a couple of infectious fusion pieces, one by X (the rockabilly meets punk date rape story Johnny Hit And Run Pauline) and the other from The Jesus & Mary Chain (breathily and gothically recalling Spector-era R&B with Just Like Honey).

The Velvet Underground are channeled through a modern rock Ouija board via The Dream Syndicate and their 1982 debut song Tell Me When It's Over. It ends up sandwiched between two epic mid-1980s, however, by two of the most beloved alternative acts of the 80s and 90s. Depeche Mode, on one hand, are represented via Black Celebration, which, like the M.O.B. song, was used to kickstart an album. However, Depeche Mode had garnered a reputation in the English synth-pop move which spawned Yazoo (led by former DP founder Vince Clarke) and Soft Cell, and this five-minute mood piece successfully brought some ominous new technical and performance-based tricks into their repertoire, despite the end result gave them the spooky sensibilities of a Dario Argento/Goblin soundtrack. The Red Hot Chili Peppers, though, were a punk band who wasn’t afraid to show their groovier side. Taken from the George Clinton-produced "Freaky Styley" LP, when the band had the late guitarist Hillel Slovak and were infamous for their visionary use of tube socks years before "American Pie," Hollywood is an obviously P. Funk-inspired remake of The Meters' "Africa," and features exceptional work by Michael "Flea" Balzary on bass and guest saxophonist Maceo Parker.

New Order's classic 1982 single Temptation, a keyboard-textured dance track that basically laid the foundation for their most adored 1980s work, shows off that the band that was once Joy Division could easily carry on and form their own second legacy. Singer Bernard Sumner (formerly Mr. Albrecht) delivers steely guitar riffs against an infectious rhythm section augmented by synthesizer expert Gillian Gilbert, who was the newest musician on the block after Ian Curtis passed away in 1980 (he will appear later on this set with his mates). Another individual who was a late arrival to the party was one Henry Garfield, who joined the hardcore punk combo Black Flag and eventually became Henry Rollins afterwards. His raspy shouts and intense presence are felt in the loud, short a**-kicker Rise Above.

The set concludes with several other nifty tracks, such as Japan's Ghosts, with its sparse marimba rhythm and David Sylvian's Ferry-esque voice; Aztec Camera's Oblivious, where a then-teenaged Roddy Frame made a perfect new wave number not with synthesizers, but with an acoustic guitar strummed and plucked in a dreamy Spaniard style; Husker Du, the Minneapolis trio who rivaled The 'Mats in terms of blistering energy on the basis of the song Don't Want To Know If You're Lonely; Magazine's Howard Devoto cracking blunt observations ("I know the meaning of life/It doesn't help me a bit") against a slinky bass line on A Song From Under The Floorboards; the quirky Back In Flesh by Wall Of Voodoo, whose "Mexican Radio" synth line seems plucked from this earlier song (get a load of singer Stan Ridgeway throughout this track, particularly at the end); and finally, the drolly gorgeous Cattle And Cane by The Go-Betweens.

Disc two once again ponders the various forms of alternative indie rock in the 1980s, throwing in several intriguing new genres. For instance, the earliest sounds of modern industrial music are represented thanks to the inclusion of Wardance by Killing Joke and Stigmata by Ministry. Clearly, Ministry's Alain Jourgensen, a former purveyor of techno goth dance tracks, must have heard Jaz Coleman's distorted, dry-throated barks and the steely guitar slashes of Geordie on a previous K.J. title and discovered his true calling. In a funny twist, Ways To Be Wicked, a cowpoke rock song penned by Tom Petty and Mike Campbell and performed Los Angeles' Lone Justice, is stuck in between the two songs.

Fans of thrashing punk will be satiated on this disc with the arrival of songs by the Minutemen (Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing), Dinosaur Jr. (Freak Scene) and Concrete Blonde (Still In Hollywood), all three of them are certifiable masterpieces of white-knuckle riffage and honest lyrics. Devotees of synthesizers and such will thrill to the sounds of Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (Enola Gay), Prefab Sprout (When Love Breaks Down) and Ultravox (Vienna, which as close to a power ballad you'll hear on this boxed set). Those who love to hear their retro-styled grooves will enjoy the reggae-tinted sounds of The dB's (Amplifier) and the graven rockabilly of The Cramps (Goo Goo Muck).And those who crave uncompromising hard rock with clever pop hooks and hummable lyrics will be proud of selections by Chrissie Hynde & The Pretenders (Message Of Love), Pat DiNizio & The Smithereens (Behind The Wall Of Sleep) and by The Raincoats (Fairytale In The Supermarket), an all-girl group whose catalog was reissued at the insistence of former Geffen artist Kurt Cobain, who also once acoustically covered The Meat Puppets' Lake Of Fire.

However, it's always tough to select favorites from this bunch, because I'm fond of many of the songs I have already listed, like The Pretenders, Dinosaur Jr. and The Smithereens. Still, there's many more songs on disc two I adore completely. The Smiths, for instance, are heard with their deliciously cunning This Charming Man, conjuring up sublime images of the Mozzer himself decked out in hearing aid and sporting a bouquet of gladiolas. The Dead Milkmen, who have always been a proud part of my music collection, are heard via their most popular tune to date, 1988's irresistible misfit love song Punk Rock Girl. My favorite early 1980s ska band, The English Beat, amp up the brass section (or at least Saxa's saxophone) on the swinging Mirror In The Bathroom. Andy Partridge delivers one of his finest moments with what is to me the most giddy XTC number to date, 1982's Senses Working Overtime. The Violent Femmes' neurotic acoustic punk worked to their advantage in 1983, as evidenced in the popular lust anthem Blister In The Sun. And, finally, Joy Division, whose Love Will Tear Us Apart was actually the song which closed the previous "No Thanks!" boxed set. This is still a powerful song 24 years after its arrival, with its love lost lyrics delivered in prophetic remorse by Ian Curtis and a crystalline yet gloomy instrumental arrangement, but it fits better in the middle of this third disc than it did at the end of the other collection's fourth CD.

Disc three opens with the most odd name of any of the artists here: Echo & The Bunnymen. Still, you will be gripped the moment you hear the violins kick in at the beginning of their brilliant 1983 single The Cutter. Experimental and dark, the song is at once a paean to what the strengths of the band were in the 1980s: Ian McCulloch's dramatically frightened shrieks, Will Sergeant's rippling lead guitars, and the syncopated rhythm of late drummer Pete DeFreitas and bassist Les Pattinson. However, the epic bleakness in this song is underscored by the fierce Pay To Cum!, a raucous early song by the Washington, D.C. punk outfit Bad Brains that is literally done with the quickness.

Fans of the new a cappella Bjork album "Medulla" should latch on to the awesome, jittery/gutteral vocal work she provided for The Sugarcubes on their superb 1988 release Birthday, with its surreal lyrics of birds sewn in pubic regions and a discordant blend of trumpets and guitar. In the meantime, those who appreciate what nu metal had to offer in its earliest incarnation will enjoy the blend of slap bass and pile-driffing riffs in Faith No More's We Care A Lot, an outlash against pop musicians' charity recordings sung by original vocalist Chuck Mosley (original if you think in terms of their released recorded output, and not in terms of history, or else you'd figure in Courtney Love).

The bulk of this third disc belongs to London bands, anyway. From Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians (Madonna Of The Wasps) to Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (The Mercy Seat) to Love & Rockets (Kundalini Express), several of these bands left their own stamp on the indie scene. Robyn Hitchcock's "Madonna" is a stellar 1989 song that borrows its guitar-driven pop craft from vintage R.E.M. Nick Cave's "Mercy Seat" is a doomed masterpiece of a song, where marching drums, thunderous piano chords, and grinding sounds of guitar and violin build to one of the most intense codas ever heard on record. And, like a true poet, he commits both the aggressive and fearful perspectives of a man marching toward the electric chair like he's taking his place on the forgiving Throne of God. The Psychedelic Furs add hints of their edged-out New Romantic passion on All That Money Wants, produced by Stephen Street (who helmed the final Smiths studio LP from 1987). It's the perfect meld between the waltzing studio glamour of "Heartbreak Beat" and the raw rock power of "Pretty In Pink." Love And Rockets, which was the band formed after the disbanding of Bauhaus (see the next disc), crafted their own riff on T-Rex's timeless glam rock, and the sweaty yet somewhat meditative "Kundalini Express" ("You have let go of ego, ego is no longer you/Closer to nirvana since the porter's whistle blew") tips its hat towards the Rolling Stones as well.

And in a twist of fate that I find really odd, Public Image Ltd. shows up on this boxed set with Rise, after John Lydon forbid license of any early PIL or Sex Pistols tracks on Rhino's punk boxed set. And this is the complete 6:18 version! Don't get me wrong: this is a f*ckin' good song and all, with collaborative efforts by the likes of Steve Vai and Ginger Baker, and John Lydon devolves into Johnny Rotten well enough around the finale ("Anger is an energy!"). But only now we finally get Lydon's blessing for a compilation cut, after it could've been most appreciated before. "Rise" is a shining part of his PIL work, but, stacking it up against the Sex Pistols, it just isn't exceptional. Still, it fits in the context of the box and I can't argue for it to be banished. I just get the feeling I've been...cheated! Damn you, Johnny Rotten!

Other highlights of disc three are songs that just need to get mentioned on general principle: Under The Milky Way from The Church, which is one of a couple choice cuts that benefited from American mainstream attention; Manchester outfits The Stone Roses (the retro-cool rocker She Bangs The Drums) and Throbbing Gristle (the rubbery early-eighties electronica whimsy of Adrenalin); Ana Ng from Brooklyn's beloved They Might Be Giants, who know the value of a well-placed accordion; the hypnotic Swamp Thing by The Chameleons UK; Gang Of Four's disco-thumping, finger-waving To Hell With Poverty; the geek rock heir to Television, aka The Feelies (Fa Ce-La); the jaw-dropping 60s-folk/paisley underground majesty of The Rain Parade's I Look Around; and, to save the very best for last, Sonic Youth and the stunning Teen Age Riot, which sticks out the most on this entire disc even when placed against a song sung by Bjork.

The Pixies, who have at long last reunited and proven to a new generation that they were one of the true pioneers of what was labeled grunge, kick off the final CD with Monkey Gone To Heaven. From then on, diversity once again reigns supreme. Hardcore aficionados should take note of selections from D.C.'s Minor Threat (Straight Edge), SoCal's Suicidal Tendencies (Institutionalized) and L.A.'s "melodically hardcore" Descendents (Suburban Home). Those in love with the current garage rock revival should jump immeditately to The Lyre's buoyant I Want To Help You Ann. Peter Murphy, Daniel Ash & the rest of Bauhaus contribute 9-and-a-half minutes of lingeringly downbeat grace with Bela Lugosi's Dead. Even singer/songwriters get their due here, from Julian Cope's walloping rocker World Shut Your Mouth to Kate Bush's ethereal Top 40 hit Running Up That Hill to Billy Bragg's stellar closing tune, A New England. And at long last, highly familiar tunes from the likes of Siouxsie & The Banshees (Christine), Jane's Addiction (Jane Says), Camper Van Beethoven (Take The Skinheads Bowling), Gun Club (Sex Beat), and The Happy Mondays (24 Hour Party People) stand alongside "did you forget so soon?" tracks from the likes of Cocteau Twins (Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops), Beat Happening (Our Secret), The Pogues (A Pair Of Brown Eyes), Hoodoo Gurus (I Want You Back), and...yes, those Butthole Surfers (Moving To Florida).

No Rhino Records boxed set would be complete without a nifty booklet, would it? A cartoon desk and marquee ads for some of the various acts on the set pop out on the front, and inside is your usual assortment of texts and graphics. Compilation producer Gary Stewart is on taps once again to provide reasonable justification for this boxed set's contents ("We Cared A Lot"), as well as a confirmation of my suspicions that this is "a sequel of sorts" to the "No Thanks!" package. Pop music critic Karen Schoemer provides a hilarious, reflective essay ("It's My Freak Scene...") on how she followed punk/indie music from her freshman days at a Virginia college in 1984. In it, she admits she was disappointed by the calculated mass appeal of one of her idols in a time when it was cool to be a superstar (Springsteen was "dumbed down" in order to have a hit with "Dancing In The Dark"), and she elaborately recalls the feelings of disgust when she first saw Madonna on the TV in the lounge. Twin Tone cofounder Peter Jesperson and Black Flag guitarist/SST founder Greg Ginn are each interviewed for one-page spreads, and there's about four other very brief essays from the likes of Factory Records founder Anthony Wilson and indie musician Steve Wynn. And Rhino commentator John Srebalus runs through all 82 tracks and compiles brief information on each band and the themes behind the songs, and each paragraph-long passage is accompanied by a vintage photograph of the band.

This is like a scrapbook of old friends that have completely changed over the course of 20 years, and it's pure fun to go through these photos. You can look at the members of Joy Division and trace them to New Order, and do the same with Bauhaus to Love And Rockets. You can gape at how glammed-out Tommy Stinson looks, how Southern gentleman-like Morrissey is dressed, how babyish the then-22-year-old Bjork Gudmondsottir appears, and also how curly Michael Stipe's hair was when he still had it on him. And wait until you get a load of the bizarre semblance between Perry Farrell and Linda Perry, a quintet of birds thanks to Faith No More, John Lydon blowing smoke out his nose, Jello Biafra posing like a crane, Henry Rollins looking like the last person in the world to ever consider going spoken word, and Robert Smith minus the mascara and with shortened hair.

And isn't that the typical reflection of the 1980s, as something kitschy and dated by the awful fashions, the awful haircuts, the awful artists and the awful songs/videos? Rhino attempts to dispel that notion once and for all throughout LEFT OF THE DIAL: DISPATCHES FROM THE '80s UNDERGROUND, which is considerably the best boxed release of the year thus far. Every artist, every recording, and every note, no matter what time frame or musical genre they were rooted in, crackled with independence, power, smarts and challenges. Many in this boxed set had been influenced by the braver sounds of the past decade, music that indeed was once a part of the underground as well, and whose sounds would in turn be heard by another generation. And there are flaws to be considered, because this is a sprawling anthology of 10 years worth of alternative rock music in which labels and crowds started to expand widely. But I already mentioned them. All that leaves for Rhino is to round up "Forever Nevermind: The '90s Indie Scene" and make a trilogy, and then they'll have proven that they are a label who knows that the underground music scene is simply unstoppable, and that there are always rewarding new sounds to be found left of center.

The complete track listing for LEFT OF THE DIAL: DISPATCHES FROM THE '80s UNDERGROUND (complete with geographical location reference):
DISC 1
1. "Radio Free Europe" - R.E.M. (Athens)
2. "Going Underground" - The Jam (Woking)
3. "A Forest" - The Cure (Crawley)
4. "Holiday In Cambodia" - Dead Kennedys (San Francisco)
5. "I'm In Love With A German Film Star" - The Passions (London)
6. "I Will Dare" - The Replacements (Minneapolis)
7. "That's When I Reach For My Revolver" - Mission Of Burma (Boston)
8. "Johnny Hit And Run Pauline" - X (Los Angeles)
9. "Just Like Honey" - The Jesus And Mary Chain (Glasgow)
10. "Black Celebration" - Depeche Mode (Basildon)
11. "Tell Me When It's Over" - The Dream Syndicate (Los Angeles)
12. "Hollywood (Africa)" - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (Los Angeles)
13. "Temptation" - New Order (Manchester)
14. "Ghosts" - Japan (London)
15. "A Song From Under The Floorboards" - Magazine (Manchester)
16. "Oblivious" - Aztec Camera (Glasgow)
17. "Don't Want To Know If You Are Lonely" - Husker Dü
18. "Rise Above" - Black Flag (Hermosa Beach)
19. "Back In Flesh" - Wall Of Voodoo (Los Angeles)
20. "Cattle And Cane" - The Go-Betweens (Brisbane)
DISC 2
1. "Message Of Love" - The Pretenders (London)
2. "Vienna" - Ultravox (London)
3. "Freak Scene" - Dinosaur Jr. (Amberst)
4. "This Charming Man" - The Smiths (Manchester)
5. "Stigmata" - Ministry (Chicago)
6. "Ways To Be Wicked" - Lone Justice (Los Angeles)
7. "Wardance" - Killing Joke (Notting Hill)
8. "Enola Gay" - Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (Liverpool)
9. "Mirror In The Bathroom" - The English Beat (Birmingham)
10. "Fairytale In The Supermarket" - The Raincoats (London)
11. "Behind The Wall Of Sleep" - The Smithereens (Carteret)
12. "Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing" - The Minutemen (San Pedro)
13. "Punk Rock Girl" - The Dead Milkmen (Philadelphia)
14. "Still In Hollywood" - Concrete Blonde (Los Angeles)
15. "Love Will Tear Us Apart" - Joy Division (Manchester)
16. "Blister In The Sun" - Violent Femmes (Milwaukee)
17. "Lake Of Fire" - Meat Puppets (Tucson)
18. "Amplifier" - The dB's (Winston-Salem)
19. "When Love Breaks Down" - Prefab Sprout (Newcastle)
20. "Goo Goo Muck" - The Cramps (New York)
21. "This Corrosion" - Sisters Of Mercy (Leeds)
22. "Senses Working Overtime" - XTC (Swindon)
DISC 3
1. "The Cutter" - Echo & The Bunnymen (Liverpool)
2. "Pay To Cum!" - Bad Brains (Washington, D.C.)
3. "Birthday" - The Sugarcubes (Reykjavik)
4. "Madonna Of The Wasps" - Robyn Hitchcock 'N' The Egyptians (London)
5. "We Care A Lot" - Faith No More (San Francisco)
6. "Teen Age Riot" - Sonic Youth (New York)
7. "To Hell With Poverty" - Gang Of Four (Leeds)
8. "Fa Cé-La" - The Feelies (Hoboken)
9. "Ana Ng" - They Might Be Giants (Brooklyn)
10. "Swamp Thing" - The Chameleons UK (Middleton)
11. "The Mercy Seat" - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (London)
12. "I Look Around" - The Rain Parade (Los Angeles)
13. "All That Money Wants" - Psychedelic Furs (London)
14. "Under The Milky Way" - The Church (Sydney)
15. "Rise" - Public Image Ltd. (London)
16. "Kundalini Express" - Love And Rockets (London)
17. "Gravity Talks" - Green On Red (Los Angeles)
18. "Adrenalin" - Throbbing Gristle (Manchester)
19. "She Bangs The Drums" - The Stone Roses (Manchester)
DISC 4
1. "Monkey Gone To Heaven" - The Pixies (Boston)
2. "Uncertain Smile (original 7" version)" - The The (Swadlincote)
3. "Bela Lugosi's Dead" - Bauhaus (Northampton)
4. "Christine" - Siouxsie & The Banshees (Bromley)
5. "Straight Edge" - Minor Threat (Washington, D.C.)
6. "I Want To Help You Ann" - The Lyres (Boston)
7. "Our Secret" - Beat Happening (Olympia)
8. "Jane Says" - Jane's Addiction (Los Angeles)
9. "World Shut Your Mouth" - Julian Cope (Liverpool)
10. "Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)" - Kate Bush (Bexleybeath)
11. "Sex Beat" - Gun Club (Los Angeles)
12. "Take The Skinheads Bowling" - Camper Van Beethoven (Santa Cruz)
13. "Institutionalized" - Suicidal Tendencies (Venice)
14. "Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops" - Cocteau Twins (Grangemouth)
15. "24 Hour Party People" - Happy Mondays (Manchester)
16. "I Want You Back" - Hoodoo Gurus (Sydney)
17. "Suburban Home" - The Descendents (Los Angeles)
18. "A Pair Of Brown Eyes" - The Pogues (Kings Cross)
19. "Jet Fighter" - The Three O' Clock (Los Angeles)
20. "Moving To Florida" - The Butthole Surfers (San Antonio)
21. "A New England" - Billy Bragg (Barking)

Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Reading or Studying