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VARIOUS ARTISTS

Whatever: The '90s Pop & Culture Box

$105.98 CD

Revisiting an era of droopy-drawers rappers, bedroom beatmakers, and a musical revolution that was definitely televised, Rhino bridges the musical divides with the ultimate decade capsule.

This seven-disc, 130-track collection fuses everything from the innocence of pop-rap pioneer M.C. Hammer's "U Can't Touch This," to image-shattering rocker Sinead O'Connor's stunning cover of Prince's "Nothing Compares 2 U," to the arrival of the bruising locomotive hooks of Helmet ("Unsung") and Pantera ("Walk"), all the way to the sample-hugged atmospherics of Moby's "Natural Blues," which wraps up the eight-hour-plus odyssey. Other artists include Oasis, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jewel, Aaliyah, Hanson, Primus, Busta Rhymes, Wilco, and many more.

Much like its sisters in Rhino's cultural canon, Whatever boasts limited-edition packaging: a clear plastic pouch loaded with coffee beans secured by a thermal sleeve bearing an array of zeitgeist-capturing faux-corporate logos. Includes an 84-page book with essays by Jim DeRogatis, Joel Stein, Brian Ives, and Clark Humphrey, as well as a Q&A with SubPop cofounder Jonathan Poneman, track notes, and a fact-filled '90s timeline.

Selection # 79716