Ah the obligatory greatest hits package, an opportunity to expose a new audience to an old product or a lazy record company cash-in? The debate has raged on for years and you could cast your vote to either side of the argument. Numerous established acts have been guilty of hocking their back catalogue in new packaging, hoping to convert a flock of uninitiated listeners whilst enticing their faithful following with a couple of fresh recordings tagged onto fifteen tracks that they have shelled out for previously in alternative formats.
Nearly twenty years and six studio albums into their storied career Incubus have finally joined their legions of peers and released their first ever greatest hits collection. ‘Monuments and Melodies’ is a two disc set designed to showcase the Californian quintet’s unquestionable crossover appeal without overshadowing the uncompromising experimentalism that has consistantly provided the base to the band’s ambitious musical pursuits.
The first disc features thirteen of Incubus’s best known numbers ranging from lilting acoustic ballads a’ la ‘Drive’ to fist pumping metallic thash-outs such as ‘Anna Molly’. The disc meanders down the group’s past highlighting their ability to craft timeless slices of intelligent musicianship that refuse to be categorised. This disc reminds us of just how many different genres Incubus have flirted with over the years. Check out the lazy funk that oozes out of ‘Are You In’ or the subtle drum n’ bass touches that ground ‘Nice To Know You’. Incubus have been smuggling alternative gems into the mainstream since the late nineties and this collection underlines how fresh and different these recordings still sound. Die hards may take exception to the omission of material from the band’s earliest albums but you can’t please everyone. Bookending Disc A are two new cuts, the single ‘Black Heart Inertia’ whilst not a classic is a pleasant track that ambles along with a jangly rhythm and trademark soaring chorus and ‘Midnight Swim’, a poetic offering that basks in it’s own vibrancy before stomping a hole into a punk fueled chorus. These latest offerings provide an insight into Incubus’s current creative drive and if they are anything to go by the future certainly looks bright for these sunshine boys.
Disc B intends to unearth a different side of the band, mostly a B-side and unreleased outing this is where things really start to get interesting. Clearly the more challenging of the two discs a slew of gems lay in wait to the delight of it’s audience. Whether it be the wall of noise that is ‘Pantomime’, a highly charged account that feels as if it is being bellowed from the top of a canyon or the playful retro rumblings of ‘Martini’, this disc is an intriguing proposition that adds another layer to the Incubus onion of styles. Climaxing with a speaker blowing cover of Prince classic ‘Let’s Go Crazy’ this is not your traditional greatest hits fare and more credit to Incubus for including this offbeat audio experience.
‘Monuments and Melodies’ could just be one of the most engaging ‘best of’ sets released in recent times. Never feeling like a mash up of long forgotten moments instead standing up as it’s own compelling entity. A must have for listeners old and new!
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