Green Day - "1039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours"
Lookout Records

Yes, yes, yes- this album was released something like 13 years ago. Most people who are into Green Day already own it. So why am I reviewing it?

Because, jackass- Lookout Records remastered the damn thing, put it in some snappy new packaging, added some videos and live performances from Green Day's early years. It sounds phenomenal, and while still pretty lo-fi, the album's got more kick to it than the original version. Specifically, songs like "Paper Lanterns" and "Why Do You Want Him?" sounds more like rockers than garage pop tunes.

The video is pretty grainy, but the sound's all right. It's nice to see the Green Day boys before they got famous, playing in dinky little hole-in-the-wall joints like Gilman Street. The other big extras, the live radio performance, is kinda odd. Rather than slap it on at the end of the disc, it's in mp3 format. The audio quality is really good, and it's cool to hear songs like "One For the Razorbacks" acoustic.

Lookout did a damn fine job with this remaster. The bettering of the sound makes 1039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours worth picking up for a second go-around, and the extras should reel in all the fans that don't yet own it.