A new compilation has been released by, of all people, ESPN. The record ties into their coverage of the Extreme Games and offers three exclusive tracks alongside a grab-bag of songs taken from previously released albums by the likes of Dinosaur, Jr., Babes In Toyland, and The Muffs.
As a musical compilation the collection is quite solid; as a companion to, or inspiration for, the Extreme Games it is perhaps implausible.
Kicking off in a grunge rut, the collection starts with "Feel the Pain" from Dinosaur, Jr., "Today Is A Good Day" from Mudhoney, and "Oh Yeah" from Babes in Toyland, all of which come from the bands' most recent albums. Two upbeat tracks from Poster Children and Throwing Muses follow: "Hillbilly," from Throwing Muses, is an exclusive track that is a typically antsy, driving tune from Kristin Hersh and company.
Following this, Are You Ready For This veers in a strange direction, over to the slow country rock of Wilco (comprised of most of Uncle Tupelo), a 15 year old track from the B-52s, and an exclusive track from Chris Isaak. It is difficult to imagine extreme contestants preparing for a 60 mph vertical bike ride with the goofy music of Chris Issak or the B-52s.
The compilation continues with an exclusive track from the now- defunct Cult, "Red Eyed Troll" from the Muffs (though it could just as easily be vintage Joan Jett), "Crackin Up" from Revolting Cocks, and "Human Animal" from boring Biohazard. The deliberate, raw riffs provided by the Cult sound like perfect sonic scenery for clips of extreme sports.
If this had been released as a sampler of alternative bands on Warner subsidiaries it would be quite understandable (though they could spare us from the second rate Wasted Youth or Suicidal Tendencies rip-off offered by Biohazard). Oddly though, given the ESPN context, very few of the songs would make good backdrops for ESPN2 videos of skateboarding, skysurfing, or frozen- waterfall-climbing. Regardless, Are You Ready For This is a decent compilation of prominent American guitars.
