If you're looking for musical heroes, look no further. Rhino Records' Left Of the Dial box set, a tribute to the 80's Underground, sprawls with 82 songs by 82 different artists across 4 discs, but most all are infused with the Post-Punk revival of the conviction that music can and will change the world. Three vital components of delivering an effective message are intensity, artistry, and a sense of humor. All three elements are powerfully represented in this collection. Rhino advertises this set as its antidote to their own 80's Pop Culture box. Left Of the Dial may be an answer of sorts, but it stands alone on its own merits with recordings that in many cases are as vital now as the day they were recorded.

The Do-It-Yourself ethic of late 70's Punk gave birth to a wide-ranging Post-Punk Underground in the 80's that took its cues from an incredibly varied musical palette and, most importantly, a sense that music should be authentic and have an identifiable impact on the listener. There is an intensity in these songs that is undeniable. Whether it's the obvious Hardcore thrash of Black Flag and Bad Brains, or the lush romantic yearning of Prefab Sprout's "When Love Breaks Down," raw emotion reigns supreme. As Kate Bush eloquently sings, surrounded by a relentless beat and swirl of electronics on "Running Up That Hill", "C'mon darling let's exchange the experience."

Although the Punk scene reveled in band members' lack of formal skill at playing instruments, Post-Punk embraced a higher sense of artistic skill in creating music. The Smithereens and Stone Roses helped bring Guitar Pop to a new maturity in the 80's. The Sugarcubes, featuring a young female lead vocalist named Bjork, and the Cocteau Twins explored avant garde song structure. Joy Division's "Love Will Tear Us Apart" as well as New Order's "Temptation" prove the group's facility at bonding instantly memorable melodies to propulsive Dance-Rock with and without original lead singer Ian Curtis. All of these are part of the always interesting, sometimes stunning artistic explorations featured on Left Of the Dial.