Album of the Day

Built To Spill had a couple of indie albums under their belts when they released PERFECT FROM NOW ON on this day in 1997, and the Warner Bros. collection captures the group at a creative peak. Perhaps it was practice that made it perfect: frontman Doug Martsch had originally worked up these eight originals on his own, then rerecorded them with bassist Brett Nelson and drummer Scott Plouf, and then cut the album a third time after the trio's original tapes suffered heatstroke. With their adventurous arrangements and philosophical lyrics, these stretched-out songs border on the psychedelic like the best work of The Flaming Lips, and repeated exposure to such tracks as college radio favorite “I Would Hurt A Fly” will no doubt prove habit-forming. Cited by Pitchfork as one of the 1990s’ best albums, PERFECT FROM NOW ON remains essential listening for alternative rock fans.