Before it got really, really stupid, alt-country ruled, and Rhett Miller's band, the Old 97's, were one of the acts responsible for popularizing the genre in the '90s. The 97's' canon and legacy has always eclipsed Miller's solo material, and unfairly so—Miller's solo debut, The Instigator, was dismissed unanimously by the press upon its release, and while it's undeniably cheesy (the opening track, "Our Love," as clever and catchy as it is, wouldn't sound out of place playing at a subliminal volume in a K-Mart), it's still a sterling, smart pop record.

by Morgan Troper