A Cabinet of Curiosities [Box set, Limited Edition, Import, Best of, Enhanced, Explicit Lyrics]

Fans of the original lineup of Jane's Addiction will love this box set. It's loaded with demos, b-sides, cover versions, and live tracks, without ANY filler from the studio albums. Everything has been remastered and sounds great. JA and Rhino deserve heaps of praise for not larding up the discs with songs everybody has already.

The demos document early versions of pretty much everything on JA's first two major label releases. They're an interesting way to hear how things change when bands get access to heaps of record company production dollars. Casual fans probably won't be terribly interested in the demos, but listeners with a passion for the creative process will find a lot of cool moments on the first two discs. The highlight of this box for me, though, is the full concert on the third disc. The band is hot, hot, hot, truly on fire!

Unfortunately, the limited edition packaging is a mixed bag. While the cabinet is pretty cool (even though the "wood" is really that sawdust + glue stuff used in the back of old TV's), it's a bit smaller than one might expect from the product picture. In reality, the cabinet is roughly the size of a Wii console. I also was a little disappointed by the booklet, mainly because Rhino usually produces stellar box set books. The main essay reads like a press release, the guest quotes are kind of dull, and a lot of the pix are just closeups of the booklet cover.

These are really minor quibbles though--the bottom line is that there's a heap of great music here, most of it previously unreleased. Anybody who digs Nothing's Shocking and Ritual de lo Habitual ought to pick up this box set, in either of its incarnations. New JA fans, on the other hand, should get the first three albums before diving into the deep archival stuff here.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 because Rhino did not succumb to the usual record company practice of forcing people to re-buy album cuts.

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For those who are wondering what is on the DVD, here's the track list:
* Soul Kiss: The Fan's Video (featuring Mountain Song and City)
* Music videos (Had A Dad, Ocean Size, Stop!, Been Caught Stealing, Classic Girl, Ain't No Right)
* Live at the City Square, Milan, Italy/For MTV Italy, 10-11-90 (Whøres, Then She Did..., Three Days)

The only thing that would make this perfect is another live DVD showcasing a full unedited concert. But I certainly have NO complaints here. This is amazing, especially if you can find the 5 disc version which is a great supplement to the live tracks already included. The 5th disc includes an amazing version of "Of Course" and an awesome live version of "Ted Just Admit It".

The audio quality on the demos and live tracks are very clean and definitely worth the price. The included book is everything any fan would love to have...hundreds of pictures, flyers and awesome info about one of musics greatest endeavors to date. The playing cards and mini-bead dolls of each member just ice the cake of this set. What are you waiting for....go get this before its gone. Amazon doesnt tell you there is a very limited amount of these available.

Fans of the original lineup of Jane's Addiction will love this box set. It's loaded with demos, b-sides, cover versions, and live tracks, without ANY filler from the studio albums. Everything has been remastered and sounds great. JA and Rhino deserve heaps of praise for not larding up the discs with songs everybody has already.

The demos document early versions of pretty much everything on JA's first two major label releases. They're an interesting way to hear how things change when bands get access to heaps of record company production dollars. Casual fans probably won't be terribly interested in the demos, but listeners with a passion for the creative process will find a lot of cool moments on the first two discs. The highlight of this box for me, though, is the full concert on the third disc. The band is hot, hot, hot, truly on fire!

I was disappointed by the box set booklet though. The main essay reads like a press release, the guest quotes are kind of dull, and many of the pix are just closeups of the booklet cover. More details on the recording sessions and performances would have been a lot more appealing to people who are interested in a non-Greatest Hits collection.

These are really minor quibbles--the bottom line is that there's a heap of great music here, most of it previously unreleased. Anybody who digs Nothing's Shocking and Ritual de lo Habitual ought to pick up this box, in either of its incarnations. New JA fans, on the other hand, should get the first three albums before diving into the deep archival stuff here.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 because Rhino did not succumb to the usual record company practice of forcing people to re-buy album cuts.

-----
For those who are wondering what is on the DVD, here's the track list:
* Soul Kiss: The Fan's Video (featuring Mountain Song and City)
* Music videos (Had A Dad, Ocean Size, Stop!, Been Caught Stealing, Classic Girl, Ain't No Right)
* Live at the City Square, Milan, Italy/For MTV Italy, 10-11-90 (Whøres, Then She Did..., Three Days)

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 24 reviews  4.4 out of 5 stars