Fuzz

Equal parts punk, prog, and just plain wackiness, Alice Donut carved a niche for themselves in the late '80s and early '90s. But besides their small yet loyal fan base, the group never reached the masses. After spending several years during the late '90s on hiatus, the group reunited in the early 21st century for shows (documented on the 2004 DVD, London, There's a Curious Lump in My Sack) and an all-new album (2003's Three Sisters). The reunion must have gone well, because the Donuts are back for more, with the arrival of 2006's Fuzz. Their quirkiness remains intact — look no further than the album-opening "Madonna's Bombing Sarajevo" — as well as the group's penchant for penning melodic tunes that stick in your brain like a stainless steel scalpel knife, especially "Days Away (At the Wake of a Friend)." Tomas Antona's vocals sound comparable to Perry Farrell's on "Little Monkey," which shouldn't come as a surprise — the group was always compared to Jane's Addiction during their heyday. Twenty years after they first formed, Fuzz shows that Alice Donut hasn't lost one iota of their uniqueness.