Waste of Mind by Zebrahead

Waste of Mind, the second album from La Habra, California's Zebrahead and their first for a major label, hit the racks on Columbia in October 1998. Howard Benson produced, and the five-piece that had started out in 1996 comes on like a pileup at the skate park: Ali Tabatabaee rapping, Justin Mauriello singing and slinging rhythm guitar, Greg Bergdorf on lead guitar, Ben Osmundson on bass and Ed Udhus behind the kit.

This is rap rock with a pop-punk sugar rush, verses barked over chunky riffs and choruses built for shouting back. "Get Back" and "The Real Me" were the tracks that carried it onto the countdowns, and "Check" got a second life when Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 put it in the game's soundtrack. It sits between the band's self-titled first album and Playmate of the Year.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.