Mudhoney have always been one of those bands that I’ve tried really hard to like but never could because nothing of theirs that I heard ever been that good. Perhaps it was because I discovered them after the alternative gold rush of 1991, when they had been signed to a major label and released an album whose best tracks were 30 seconds long and sounded like Mark Arm farting into a microphone.

I had never really heard any of their old Sub Pop stuff until now. I’ve been listening to a sampler disc from March to Fuzz, the band’s upcoming two CD/three record collection of greatest hits and rarities, and I must say, the stuff that people always talk about as being their best songs are really good.

It doesn’t get much better than “In ‘n Out of Grace,” “Suck You Dry,” or “Touch Me I’m Sick,” but unfortunately there were no liner notes accompanying the promo, so I’m unable to reference the years in which these songs were originally released, although I’d be willing to bet that the better songs were from the Superfuzz Bigmuff days of the late ‘80s.

Basically, Mudhoney seem to be one of those bands who hit their stride in the early ‘90s, and have slowly gone downhill from there. And that’s why they make compilations for the everyman, not pursuant enough to undertake looking for the original records, but rather settling for a greatest hits package in which he knows, every track will be gold. Thank you Mudhoney, for navigating through years of muck and mire to bring the consumer this necessary treasure map of sorts.