Genius + Love = Yo La Tengo

GENIUS + LOVE = YO LA TENGO is a compilation of Yo La Tengo outtakes and rarities. Collections of odds and ends often serve to show just why certain songs didn't make it onto a finished record, but Yo La Tengo's two-CD compilation of B-sides, cover songs, rarities, outtakes, one-offs, and other non-LP material is a surprisingly satisfying set. Divided into vocal and instrumental side, this record gathers 30 tunes mostly from the early '90s. Inspired covers abound: a raucous "Too Late" by seminal Brit post-punks Wire, a plaintive version of John Cale's "Hanky Panky No-How" sung tenderly by Georgia Hubley, and a ragged take on Jackson Browne's "Somebody's Baby," which casts the song in an entirely new light. Elsewhere, "Cast a Shadow" by rock primitives Beat Happening is sheer bubblegum joy, as is the almost absurdly simple "Something to Do," taken from a low-budget film score. "Speeding Motorcycle," with phoned-in vocals by its author, Daniel Johnston, is quite bizarre, and lots of fun. The instrumentals run the gamut: there are alternate takes of Tengo songs, noisy rave-ups (like the 24-minute closer, "Sunsquashed") and sleekly hypnotic songs like "Nutricia." Keeping true to their hybrid sensibility, Yo La Tengo also mix the Ramones' punk anthem "Blitzkrieg Bop," with Ventures-style surf for a version even your grandmother would like.