Material Issue - Best Of/20th Century (2006)

It's a shame it took so long for somebody to put out a Material Issue compilation, especially in the wake of collections from far lesser bands of the era like EMF, Screaming Trees, and Ned's Atomic Dustbin. The Chicago power pop trio may have suffered beneath the avalanche of grunge, but their racket was far more intelligent and melodic, yielding two of college rock's best singles, "Diane" and "Valerie Loves Me." Mercury's 20th Century Masters -- The Millennium Collection: The Best of Material Issue features a scant 12 songs culled from the group's four full-length records, but they serve as a great sampling of what turned out to be a pretty great canon of material. Fans can't expect a comprehensive box of rarities and demos, as much of those appeared on 1997's Telecommando Americano after the death of frontman Jim Ellison, but for anyone wondering what else was going on in the '90s besides Brit-pop and grunge, this is a good place to start.