The Polyphonic Spree

Rarely does a tribute album come so close to being as electrifying as the original. But with a few exceptions (the new material), these tunes tease new layers of poignant irreverence out of Hedwig's already fabulous sonic coiffure. The casting alone borders on brilliance: Frank Black's cover of "Sugar Daddy" might be the best thing he's ever done. Yoko Ono (!) expertly disembowels "Exquisite Corpse." And Sleater-Kinney and the B-52's Fred Schneider on "Angry Inch"? Peanut butter, meet chocolate. The cherry on top is that the proceeds went to the Harvey Milk School for GLBT youth.