Matchbox Twenty

After a five year hiatus, Matchbox Twenty has released "Exile on Mainstream," a two disc effort. The album – the title references The Rolling Stone's "Exile on Main St." – is a greatest hits collection, with an additional CD featuring six new songs.

After becoming one of the biggest bands of the past decades, Matchbox Twenty went on hiatus, and lead singer Rob Thomas launched a solo career. When Thomas became a huge success on his own, it appeared like we might have already seen the final days of Matchbox Twenty.

Guess not. Eleven years after releasing their first album, Matchbox Twenty is surprising everyone with "Exile on Mainstream."

And the surprise is that album is great. Songs like "3 AM," "Bent," and "Bright Lights," remind you why Matchbox Twenty was so successful. All of the old tracks are well-written and well-produced music by talented musicians, and are unapologetic for their simplicity.

As for the new songs, they are typical toe-tapping mid-tempo Matchbox songs, capable of being top-40 rock hits. It's accessible, raw, and confident. The first single, "How Far We've Come," showcases Rob Thomas's vocal talents, but unlike their previous work, it does not make him the star.

Thomas handed over songwriting duties to his band mates on the new material and it shows. The instruments compliment each other and the band finally sounds like a musical collective instead of Thomas's back up.

In true Matchbox Twenty fashion, the new material features lyrics that are shameless and honest. Though they lack complexity, they are heart-felt and avoid pretension.

The first disc, which contains the new material, ends strong with "Can't Let You Go," an emotional song with great composition. It showcases Thomas's vocal talent, but also the musicianship of the rest of the band.

While the six new songs are solid, they hardly justify a comeback. There is nothing to pull you away from the eleven old chart toppers. That said, "Exile on Mainstream," will have you singing along to "3 AM," like it's 1997 again, and that's bound to be fun.