that dog. - Totally Crushed Out

that dog. is a delicious casserole of some of my favorite things. They're friends with Weezer, they're fuzzy 90's rockers, they're a predominantly female band (they have some of the most awesome ladies in music: Anna Waronker as well as both Rachel and Petra Haden), and they write awesome songs. It's as if they were created in a lab specifically for me to like them. Congrats to the guys in labcoats. Your little scheme worked.

Totally Crushed Out is probably that dog.'s strongest album. "He's Kissing Christian" was a minor hit for the band, but I've always been a little confused by that. It's probably my least favorite song on the album but it probably struck a certain chord in 1995 because of the subject matter alone. I think the album opener "Ms. Wrong" is a stronger overall song, but that's neither here nor there. Totally Crushed Out is a nice slice of 90's rock. If you're still crushing on Letters to Cleo or Veruca Salt (I know I am), you need this.