This 2 pack includes CD Exile On Mainstreet plus a bonus download card for tracks from their exclusive Soundcheck performance "Bright Lights," "How Far We've Come," "If You're Gone," "3AM" and "These Hard Times."

Matchbox Twenty's arrival to the music scene in 1997 did not go unnoticed. Winning Best New Band honors from the Rolling Stone readers poll -- among other kudos -- the band found huge success with its debut album, Yourself Or Someone Like You. In three years, the album sold more than 10 million copies and subsequent discs continued the march straight to the top of the charts.

But in 2002, the release of More Than You Think You Are brought both more hits ("Disease," "Unwell," "Bright Lights") and a surprising end to the band's string of successful albums. Frontman Rob Thomas went on to enjoy a solo career, picking up a trio of Grammys and snagging Billboard's Songwriter of the Year honors twice. But for fans of Matchbox Twenty, there remained a lack of closure brought on by the band's disappearance.

Exile On Mainstream changes all of that. Originally, the band intended to release a greatest hits collection and add one new song to the mix, but the creative juices began flowing and yielded six new Matchbox Twenty songs. Thomas acknowledges that this was intended to be the last album the group puts out together; however, with the addition of the new songs, this disc makes sure the band goes out with a bang rather than a whimper.

The new material is definitely Matchbox Twenty through and through -- but the decade of experience shows. On the energetic first single, "How Far We've Come," the music is exuberant but the musings -- about a world that's self-destructing -- are anything but. It's a modernized take on R.E.M.'s "End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)," with Matchbox Twenty providing a timely vehicle for capturing the current state of angst.

This has never been a happy-go-lucky band, and 10 more years of slogging through relationships and the music business has only sharpened their cynical edge. The catchy "I'll Believe You When" is a dark but humorous look at love that has lost all trust. The music has a surprising bit of a twang as it unfolds the story of two people who can't seem to get it right and don't have enough sense to call it quits.

One of the most stirring new cuts is "These Hard Times," a touching track that wades through the frustrations of everyday life. Looking for relief and longing for a safe place to rest his head and his heart, this gentle ballad says what everyone has endured at one time or another, so it's virtually impossible not to relate to.

The first half dozen tracks all are solid new offerings, and they provide a terrific intro into the "best of" section. All 11 of the band's biggest hits are included, starting with the first hit, "Long Day," and progressing chronologically through the songs that kept them on the charts. Songs like "Push" and "3 AM" provide a strong reminder of why they became hugely successful. By the time they wrap it up with "Bright Lights," yet another song about loss and disappointment, they close the book on a catalog of songs that prove timeless and earnest.

Whether this truly will be their final disc remains to be seen. Either way, they've given fans a tremendous gift with Exile On Mainstream.

By Paula Felps