The Sounds Of Science
	1999

The Sounds Of Science review by VH1

When you've lived with a popular musical artist's sounds for a good chunk of a lifetime, their career evolution becomes a natural mirror for your own, a soundtrack to your life. I get the feeling that Elvis and Dylan had this effect from the way their triumphs and failures have become a part of the nation's 20th-century consciousness. Now, I don't want to compare the Beastie Boys to those two rock giants - I'll leave the Rock Hall of Fame-type measuring stick to others - but listening to The Sounds Of Science and reading the trio's autobiographical liner notes generates this kind of reflection. As has been well-documented, the Beasties' tale is primarily a story of hardcore kids getting into hip-hop, blowing up beyond their wildest dreams as frat-rappers and, just as many were writing them off as one-hit wonders, becoming highly influential artists and generational standard-bearers. But it's also a document of how a large cross-section of the Beastie generation dealt with late 20th-century America's cultural atmosphere. They rallied an anti-Reagan rebellion by way of urban subcultures, then embodied the '80s excesses they originally railed against, then created an extended, more meaningful second act to their artistic and spiritual lives. Think I'm making this up? The proof is in the grooves of "Beastie Boys" and "Fight for Your Right" and "So What'cha Want" and "Bodhisattva Vow" and "Song for the Man" ... in that order. Of course, there are subplots in this tale.The Sounds of Science accounts for the Boys' co-invention (with Run-D.M.C.) of rap-metal; their ushering in the age of new-school hip-hop (Paul's Boutique y'all); their sponsorship of an artistically superior Grand Royal posse (Luscious Jackson, Money Mark, Biz Markie, et al.); their wholehearted embrace of human rights. There are also seldom-heard oddities, the requisite B-sides, remixes and unreleased tracks that elevate these Sounds beyond some stale nostalgia mix-tape trip - the "OG version" of "Jimmy James" and the Fatboy Slim remix of "Body Movin'" being first among equals. Long after the CD player's been turned off, Sounds continues to testify, boisterously, to the importance of the Beasties - as musicians and as cultural chroniclers.

The Sounds Of Science review by CDNOW

Providing the soundtrack for many an adolescent's coming of age, the Beastie Boys are certainly deserving of a retrospective chronicling their expansive, consistently groundbreaking body of work. The question is, is a greatest hits package necessary so soon? Sounds of Science contains the requisite singles, album cuts, b-sides, and remixes that have marked the Beasties' wonderful career. But, save for a couple of songs done under the moniker of the "Country Mike Sessions," and the new song, "Alive," there isn't anything here that even the casual Beasties fan doesn't have already (or couldn't get rather easily). And "Alive," meanwhile, is so formulaic that it sounds as if the Boys -- who've gone their entire careers without subscribing to convention -- maybe are in the waning days of their existence. That being said, the Beasties' 15 years-plus of remaining fresh and crafty will be a comfort to any contemporary music fan, and the packaging alone -- with early photographs, album covers, and liner notes detailing every one of their releases -- makes this salvageable as a retrospective compendium. - Joseph Patel

The Sounds Of Science review by Wall Of Sound

The Sounds of Science ranks, along with Gangstarr's Full Clip, as one of the few signature retrospectives in a music genre not known for its sentimentality. The Beastie Boys' dozen-plus years of musical evolution have been distilled into the remarkable Sounds of Science anthology, the dynamic shifts of their career — from punk to rap to funky breakbeats, and even bossa nova — all accounted for. Rather than serving as a greatest hits compilation, The Sounds of Science is more committed to exploring the various sonic avenues that the Boys have trampled across during their time. The two-CD set goes all the way back to their proto-punk days ("Egg Raid on Mojo") and ends up with a new song, "Alive," which thumps with a big-beat riddim blast that would make Fatboy Slim smile. Reflected in the dizzying collection of songs (40 in all) is the Beasties' chimerical ability to work with diverse soundscapes. Although their career began with the cock-rock guitar strains of the Rick Rubin-produced Licensed to Ill (1986), you can hear the foundation of the Beasties' funked-out breakbeat science in songs from 1989's Paul Boutique ("Hey Ladies," "Shake Your Rump"). This would remain an underpinning of their future work, even on the punk-rap fusion tracks of Check Your Head and Ill Communication. By the time 1998's Hello Nasty came out, the Boys had come full circle, returning to the breakbeat base but adding elements of calypso, bossa nova, and dub fusions for an altogether funky sound. In this respect, the Beasties have avoided obsolescence, even as they stay mired in adolescence. Thankfully, they've grown out of their early frat-brat misogyny, but their rhyme style is still cut from the same old-school cloth that the group started with in the mid-'80s. Yet despite their lack of lyrical subtlety, the Beasties are clever enough to cover a range of expressions — from silly ("Boomin' Granny") to sophisticated ("Remote Control"), and even to sanctimonious ("Bodhisattva Vow"). The Sounds of Science is less a chronology than a complex road map to the many places the Beasties have explored as artists. From arena anthems like "Sabotage" to dance floor ditties ("Brass Monkey") to underground aural assaults ("So Whatcha Want"), the Beasties have stretched the boundaries of hip-hop with a versatility that has turned what was once marginal into the new mainstream groove. — Oliver Wang

The Sounds Of Science review by Flipside

There is certainly some kind of justice in the fact that a Beastie Boys retrospective compilation is the last FLIPSIDE album of the month for the 1990s - indeed, the century. If any band truly reflect the dynamic eclecticism, and the hyperactive infusion of influences that have characterised the last decade, then it is surely the Beasties. The wilful irony, the purposeful blending of genres, the knowing post-modern sensibilities; they’re all present and correct on the Beasties palate. When pop historians look back at the last ten years, they will surely conclude that the Beastie boys are the closest thing we have had to a Nineties-band. So, whereas ‘Sounds Of Science’ contains a smattering of curios from the Boys’ embryonic punk days, and a couple of highlights from their infamous number one debut ‘Licensed To Ill’, the majority of the 42 tracks contained here originate from the post ‘Paul’s Boutique’ sessions. However, the final track listing has been cunningly placed out of chronological order - ‘Check Your Head’s ‘The Biz Verses The Nuge’ leads now into the hair-raising ‘Sabotage’ guitar riffs, while 1995’s single ‘Shureshot’ jackhammers into Fatboy Slims hip-shaking revamp of last years ‘Body Movin’ opus. Aside from disconcerting fans who know the regular albums inside-out and are subconsciously expecting another song to jump in, this seemingly random canter through the B-boys’ history underlines the vast input their producers have over the sound. From Rick Rubin’s Rock Radio guitar riff’s (‘She’s On It’), The Dust Brothers’ multi-layered sample fests (‘Shadrach’), Mario C’s unique capture of off-kilter jams and organic/digital mixes (‘Gratitude’), or Money Mark’s sun-stroked melodicism (‘Benny and The Jets’), one thing is clear. Much as the Beasties act as musical magpies, swooping through the depths of musical history and filching whatever looks shiniest and pretties, their sound owes an incalculable debt to whoever’s behind the mixing desk at any particular time. This compilation also helps underline something which last year’s fractured ‘Hello Nasty’ opus made abundantly clear - that each Beastie Boy is increasingly trying to beat out his own clear and distinctive path. Contrast the bossanova antics of Yauch’s out-take ‘Twenty Questions’ with Horovitz’s dark and poignant ‘Live Wire’ Hammond fest, or again with Diamond’s hardcore affair ‘Soba Violence’, and the diverse directions in which the three are pulling is obvious to even the most casual observer. The irony though, is their constant ability to pull in about five different directions at once has also ensured their longevity. Make no mistake, this compilation highlights the collective genius of the Beastie Boys in no uncertain terms. The vast selection of back catalogue material is nicely balanced out against enough rare and unreleased gems to tempt even the more dedicated Beastie Boys fan into a reckless purchase. However, whereas box sets and anthologies are often stuffed to the gills with substandard material previously unreleased because it was ‘not much cop’, with ‘Sounds Of Science’, it’s a different story altogether. The out-takes of well-loved songs are all worthy additions to the canon - from the vocal-less ‘Dub The Mic’, through to the original, Hendrix-sampling version of 'Jimmy James' - and the standard of the ‘new’ tracks is remarkably good. ‘The Negotiation Limerick File’, for example, can easily hold its head up against any of the existing album tracks, while curios like ‘Railroad Blues’ are still helpful insights into the Beastie psyche. The band have matured and developed along with the disappearance of generic musical boundaries in the nineties. From the proto-big beat, hip hop of 'Paul's Boutique’, the anything goes melting pot of ‘Check Your Head’, the anthemic-yet-funky jam workout of ‘Ill Communication’ through to the splintered vision of ‘Hello Nasty’ they always have one eye on the cultural melee. Whereas, like Beck, their approach to assimilate may have the feint aroma of studied cool about it, and while they often seem voyeurs rather than true participants in the styles they unearth, ‘Sounds Of Science’ is proof that those snotty-nosed, VW plate-wearing brats have left a unique mark on music history, after all.