Pavement

As Stephen Malkmus and Scott Kannberg were putting together 'Slanted and Enchanted,' they were also turning Pavement into a real band.

Pavement made the most of that short time together, making and releasing a handful of records that rank among the '90s' very best.

Pavement changed its approach for the band's fourth album, released in February 1997, rehearsing before the sessions and working with a pair of producers.

Sure, you've heard Nirvana's 'Nevermind' and Wilco's 'Summerteeth' before. But have you heard them the way true audiophiles (and Jack White) prefer?

There’s a Pavement covers band that calls themselves the Crooked Corners, and during a gig last week, they were joined on stage by Steve West and Bob Nastanovich.

Essentially a repackaging of rarities already compiled on the 2002 'Slanted and Enchanted' reissue, this release reveals little about the iconic band's legacy.

Matador will release a series of Pavement compilations chronicling the band's decade-long career -- arguably one of the most influential to emerge in the ‘90s.

In separate interviews, Pavement's Stephen Malkmus and Scott Kannberg both say they could have been as big as Weezer.

Just as an album's opening song plays a pivotal part in a record's cycle, the closing track serves a similar and not totally unrelated purpose. In a way, the final song is the summation of an LP's musical and thematic themes, a final word on the past 45 or so minutes...

'The Secret History, Vol. 1' is due out on Aug. 11 and, ahead of that day, it’s streaming on NPR.