The Woodentops

The Woodentops share a similar high-tempo kinetic energy and quirkiness with Oingo Boingo. They spent a couple years building a sizable following, had several songs on Alt radio in 1988, were a buzz band on MTV, and seemingly just vanished at the height of their popularity.

Bowie - The 2000s

Still producing some of the best music of his career, there was an unfortunate decade-long pause in new material after he suffered a heart attack during a concert in 2004.

Easterhouse

Easterhouse only had 2 albums, and they're pretty different beasts. The second LP spawned the single "Come Out Fighting" which got some radio play and the video was used constantly as part of MTV News' intro. It's one of those albums that didn't catch me right away, but upon returning to it, it is a real grower. Kind of a mash-up of Smiths-Simple Minds-Billy Bragg.

It's TRICKY

Yes, Tricky came to prominence as an early member of Massive Attack, but he definitely cannot be pigeonholed into any genre. I'm sure that drives some fans batty, but personally, I always look forward to whatever he's gonna chuck up next.

For the uninitiated, the list of people who've collaborated or appeared on random songs throughout his catalog is pretty astonishing - Bjork, PJ Harvey, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Cyndi Lauper... just to name a few.

Siouxsie & The Banshees

From punky upstart to post-punk gloominess to radio-ready alterna-goth-pop, Siouxsie really cut out a great niche for herself and made some glorious music along the way.

Neil Young - a beginner's guide

By the time you read this post, Neil Young may have released a new album. Such is the prolific nature of his career. And it's probably detrimental to gaining younger fans, not that he needs them. It would be very easy for someone to randomly choose one of his albums and hate it. But it probably wouldn't be indicative of his ouevre.

So, here's my little guide to the essential albums if you happen to be a newbie or casual fan:

* Decade [2-disc best of compilation spanning 1967-1977] - does what it says on the package. It also includes some early essential songs he did with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash. A great introduction to his early work and will either spur you on to further dig into his early catalog or just move on.

* Freedom [1989] - A masterpiece of an album that very much put him back on many people's (especially critics) radar.

* Ragged Glory [1991] - A long-winded jam album with backing band Crazy Horse that never loses the great batch of songs Neil came up with.

* Sleeps With Angels [1994] - Shows the versatility of Crazy Horse, as Neil veers all over the place, seemingly hitting all the genres he's ever explored in one single LP. But it somehow works as a whole. Probably his darkest album.

* Harvest / Harvest Moon - For those who really dig the laidback acoustic side of Neil Young, these albums are the go-to ones, for sure.

Bowie - The '90s

The 1990s were another period of rabid creativity in Bowie's career. He started off the decade with Tin Machine, then made a pseudo-R&B album (Black Tie White Noise), then reunited with Eno for Outside, toured with Nine Inch Nails, played Andy Warhol in the movie"Basquiat," then went into drum 'n bass territory (Earthling) and finished off the decade with the first in a new trilogy of albums (Hours). That is more than most have done in a career; just another decade for db.