Partially just another label compilation, and partially the definition of a certain noise-meets-pop outlook,
Out of Their Mouth, Mk. 2 is a two-disc greatest hits of avant rock that goes from the relatively straightforward (an early version of the
Dream Syndicate's "When You Smile," from their college rock classic
The Days of Wine and Roses, the Tigerlillies' Madchester-style psych-dance groove "A Million Tears"), to a set of early no wave classics by Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Mars (the surprisingly groove-oriented "3-E"), and
Glenn Branca's
Theoretical Girls, to a set of newer tracks. These include otherwise unavailable material by noise-rock heroes
Thurston Moore (collaborating with
Lydia Lunch on the largely spoken word "The Crumb"),
Lee Ranaldo and
Wharton Tiers, as well as new songs by younger groups like Chicago's
Scissor Girls and the free jazz-influenced
Vandermark 5. As a noise rock overview,
Out of Their Mouth, Mk. 2 is hard to beat. ~ Stewart Mason