Refrigerator

Barely noticed when they were issued on the band's own Zed Records label in the early 2000s, these two albums catch Nine Below Zero simply doing what they've always done, albeit with a touch of the Unpluggeds around the gills. Released in 2002, Chilled is, in fact, the band's acoustic album, and kicks off with a song that could have been "Nights in White Satin" if it were a few decades older — "I Should Have Left It Up to You" is a Ry Cooder number that has been around the Zero camp since 1981, but this new version is at least its predecessor's equal. Moving between old favorites and new compositions, Chilled has the same sort of feel as an old Rod Stewart album, rocking from the most unexpected directions and layered with some genuinely wonderful songs. Dating from two years earlier, Refrigerator is a harder album, more in the spirit of the band in its prime, punchy and pugnacious London R&B at its modern best, and still a reliable touchstone for the band today. Add a couple of bonus tracks to each album and a fat booklet worth of memories, and two great albums come screaming out of obscurity at last.