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Live are so serious that if you went up to singer Ed Kowalczyk and said, "Excuse me, but how do you pronounce your last name?" he might punch you in the neck. Either that or he'd sit you down and speak to you of Krishna and Vishnu. Their debut album Mental Jewelry saw them carrying the torch of idealistic and spiritually minded rock a la U2. The rhythms were punchy without being straight-up Hard Rock, and the dynamics were relatively subtle. But it was Throwing Copper (1994) that revealed their transformation into one of the most popular Post-Grunge bands out there. The guitars were heavier, the rhythms pounded more and danced less, and Kowalczyk was still the passionate, good-God-what's-wrong-with-the-world kind of guy that he'd always been. The janglier moments, such as the hit "Selling the Drama," called to mind R.E.M. -- or at least R.E.M. jamming with Nirvana. They haven't changed their recipe since, as they continue to churn out heaping gobs of the world's most serious music. |