Ill Communication (Bonus CD) (Eco)

Beastie Boys Ill Communication digitally remastered for the first time, overseen by the band. The CD and digital configurations include a bonus disc of b-sides and rarities- also remastered. The original artwork has been faithfully restored in this 8-panel eco-friendly 2-CD set with fold-out poster/lyric sheet. Also available as a 180 gram 2 LP gatefold vinyl set.

By 1994 the Beasties had settled into their cultural role as the grand arbiters of cool, and Ill Communication is pretty much a catalog of coolness: live funk, a bit of hardcore, ingenious samples of obscure records, keyboards by analogue master Money Mark, guest shots by Q-Tip and Biz Markie, MCA's cop-show metal number "Sabotage," and the inevitable cascade of witty old-school rhymes. But it's also a surprisingly mature record from a band that had, after all, been at it for 12 years already. The original jazz-funk instrumentals hold their own with the group's favorite sample sources. Their voices are modestly buried in the mix, and they've tempered their old snottiness with lyrical compassion: check out "Bodhisattva Vow," a salute to Buddhist spirituality. --Douglas Wolk