Throughout a career that stretches back to the mid-'80s, Matthew Sweet has never followed trends, though his landmark 1991 album Girlfriend was responsible for starting one; in fact, many critics note that most power pop records made during the '90s owe a tremendous debt to Sweet. Two decades after the release of that iconic album, Sweet has once again swung for the fences and connected with the boldly experimental, yet deeply personal Modern Art.

Defiantly unorthodox, but often playfully so, Modern Art features 12 new compositions of Sweet's trademark wistful, yearning pop that recall some of Sweet s touchstones: the Beatles, Beach Boys and Big Star. 'She Walks the Night' is reminiscent of earlyperiod Byrds, while 'Ladyfingers' stomps along with the authority of T. Rex. Other standout tracks include the swirling, psychedelic 'Oh, Oldendaze!,' the ruggedly assertive 'Late Nights With the Power Pop,' the acerbically witty 'Evil By Design, Goodbye Nature' and the sweetly soulful 'Modern Art.'

Longtime musical cohort Ric Menck (Velvet Crush) does all the drumming on the album (except for 'Ivory Tower,' which is built on a random drum pattern supplied by Sweet's friend, actor/musician Fred Armisen). Dennis Taylor s deft and urgent guitar lines serve as a running commentary to Sweet s introspective singing. Finished by mastering engineer Glenn Schick, Modern Art promises to be another trend-setting release by Sweet.

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What do alt-rock/power pop heroes like Susanna Hoffs (The Bangles) and Matthew Sweet do on their time off? They get together in Matthew's comfy home studio and record a stunning album of their favorite '60s pop hits and rarities, of course!

The two first worked together in conjunction with Mike Myers as members of the band Ming Tea, appearing in all three Austin Powers movies and soundtracks. Now they've struck out on their own with Under The Covers Vol. 1, a tribute to their favorite '60s acts, including The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Neil Young,The Who, and cult favorites like The Velvet Underground,The Zombies,The Left Banke, and Love. Leaving the songwriting to others lets Matthew and Susanna focus on singing, and the results are breathtaking. For extra authenticity, they even asked Van Dyke Parks (most famous for his work with the Beach Boys)to play keyboards and write string arrangements. It all adds up to a rock fan's dream come true.

Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs delighted rock and pop fans when they teamed up as Sid 'n Susie to record an album's worth of '60s classics called Under the Covers Vol. 1. Now, three years later, Under the Covers Vol. 2 finds our heroes moving forward through rock's back pages to take on another decade: the '70s. From power-pop like The Raspberries and Big Star to the soft-rock of Carly Simon and Bread, and from the classic-rock of John Lennon and Derek and the Dominos to the prog-rock of Yes, Sid 'n Susie offer a pretty thorough survey of the state of rock, just before the Sex Pistols. Features guest appearances by Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac, Steve Howe of Yes, and George Harrison's son, Dhani Harrison.

In 1991 Matthew Sweet released Girlfriend, an alternative rock milestone, and quickly followed it up with two back-to back classics, Altered Beast and 100% Fun, that cemented his reputation as an elder statesman of indie-rock. Now, nine years after his last major solo release and on the heels of side projects with The Thorns and The Bangles' Susanna Hoffs, comes his long-awaited new album, Sunshine Lies, which hearkens back to the glories of his revered '90s albums. Features long-time sidemen Richard Lloyd (Television), Ivan Julian (Richard Hell & The Voidoids), Greg Leisz (Beck, Bill Frisell), Ric Menck (Velvet Crush), and a guest vocal by Susanna Hoffs (The Bangles).

Welcome to the Playlist series. Painstakingly compiled by the artists and the music nuts at Legacy Recordings, these collections truly represent an artists complete body of work. We ve fished through Hundreds-thousands-of tracks to cherry pick the perfect playlists. Not just the hits (anyone can find those). The life changing cuts. The out-of-print tracks. The fan favorites everyone loves. The songs that make the artist who they are.

You ll no doubt enjoy the sound of the beautifully remastered songs on this CD (as opposed to MP3 s that contain less information, which translate into compromised sound). But we think the thing you ll appreciate most about this Playlist is that even though you didn t make it, you might wish you did.