PENTHOUSE: Valley Of The Sows (Beggars Banquet) -- Noisy, nasty, messy goings-on from a band who have battled with the owners of a well-known adult magazine over the use of their name. The new monicker they have been forced to adopt in the States comes a lot closer to describing their sound -- 50 Tons Of Black Terror. (4/10) PB

WASTE: Hang On (Jealous) -- Noisy, hard-driving guitars overlaid with a surprisingly harmonious vocal assault makes Waste's debut sound like Blur on a collision course with The Pixies. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if they turn out to be Liverpool's next big thing. (8/10) JS

MUCHO MACHO: The Airport Freeze (Wiiija) -- Groovy, intelligent '90s breakbeat that conjures up images of cult '60s TV theme tunes, Mucho Macho definitely have their fingers firmly pressed on the pulse of weird pop. Their forthcoming album should be a bundle of surprises and I can't wait. (9/10) JS

AMP: Sunflower (Ochre) -- In order to get your mits on this you first have the toilsome task of having to peel back numerous petals. This is flower power, Amp-style. Using the trippy '60s as their base, their sound is ideal for outdoor eco-warrior types and treehouse dwellers. Dirty fingernails, body odour and beard are probably other prerequisites. Ignore the lead track and concentrate on the minimalistic dub of the second track Zoe. (6/10) JS ALBUMS MOTLEY CRM- E: Greatest Hits (Motley Records) -- This hard-rocking four-piece have survived alcohol, drugs, lawyers, divorces and lawsuits and are now releasing their greatest hits to celebrate. For a while Motley CrM- e (pictured) were where it was at for rebellious teenagers who rocked to their polished heavy-metal guitar sounds and screaming vocals. That was until 1989 when Guns N Roses came along and showed them how it should be done. Whereas Guns N Roses records still sound aggressive and rock with wild abandon, the CrM- e sound jaded, dull and dated. I may have headbanged to tracks like Girls, Girls Girls and Dr Feelgood in my teens but hearing them again does not make me want to repeat such embarrassing feats. (3/10) PB

THE McGANNS: The McGanns (Coalition) -- Three actor brothers who keep cropping up in every cheap, unfunny sitcom, now take to music. TV trivia fans may remember that one of them used to appear in the daft Scouse soap sitcom Bread. I won't even do them the courtesy of reviewing the soft, soppy, sickeningly mind-numbing drivel that they present here. To prevent anyone from ever having to hear this, I snapped the CD in half, slashing my fingers in the process. (0/10) PB

MOA: Universal (Tommy Boy) -- Moeidur Juniusdottir is probably Iceland's most promising export since Bjork. Known simply as Moa to her friends, her eponymously-titled band employ '90s electronics, hip-hop and drum 'n' bass to carry her mellifluous and sensual vocals. From the same bag as Sneaker Pimps, Portishead and Deelite, this is one to look out for. Moa's forthcoming tour with Electracy should be a hot ticket too. (8/10) PB

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.