Five years after its previous studio album, Mudhoney comes back fully charged with the kind of Iggy Pop–influenced garage punk that made it one of the most important bands to come out of Seattle in the late '80s. It's often forgotten in the whirlwind of history that Mudhoney—not Nirvana or Soundgarden—was considered the hottest ticket from the Pacific Northwest. Yet the band's insistence on sticking to grating fuzz tones and bypassing sleek, modern album production almost guaranteed it'd be a cult band until the end. It also hinted that Mudhoney would still be singing and playing with the same intensity 25 years later. Vanishing Point is one of Mudhoney's strongest albums. Vocalist Mark Arm is thoroughly focused and tossing off witticisms like "'Scuse me while I fill the shopping cart" with the same snarling brattiness he brought to "Touch Me, I'm Sick." The sound is dry and sharp and emphasizes the combustible rhythm section and the loopy, tortured guitar solos. "The Final Course," "I Don't Remember You," and "Douchebags on Parade" are what punks call heartfelt.