Art Brut

Add Date: April 23 

Artist: Art Brut 

Album: Top of the Pops 

Label: The End 

Genre: Rock

Comments: Depending on your viewpoint, Art Brut is either the most ironic or the least ironic band from the last decade of rock music. To me, their frequently professed desire to become wildly popular--and to perform on "Top of the Pops"--always came across as tongue-in-cheek, though frontman Eddie Argos' parallel obsession with pop music in general seemed genuine. Regardless of its origin, not too many bands can match Art Brut's sense of humor; virtually no others drop witty lyrics into top-of-the-line rock songs, and very few acts have a lead guitarist of Freddy Feedback's caliber.

Despite getting lumped into the art rock movement with bands like Franz Ferdinand and (early) Bloc Party, Art Brut always considered itself a classic rock band--or so says Argos in the liner notes to the band's aptly named best-of compilation Top of the Pops. And now that they have a greatest hits album, Argos continues, they've officially crossed over into classic rock. This double LP features 17 tracks from Art Brut's four studio albums, two new cuts, and a 20-song second disc that includes demos, B-sides and covers.

Unless you're an Art Brut completist, stick with the first disc and spin tracks 3, 1, 7, 5, 10 and 13.