If you are one of Matchbox Twenty’s ten fans, I have good news for you.  Nineties crusader Rob Thomas and his pack of crooning cronies are releasing their first album in a decade, entitled North, which kicks off with their debut single, ‘She’s So Mean.’    Nothing says the 90s like a cacophony of throaty Rob Thomasisms.

The song talks about a a sassy girl who “drinks Bacardi in the morning” and is an “uptown, get around, anything goes girl…a hardcore, candy store, gimme some more girl.” I’m not sure what any of this means.  And here’s the chorus: “Yeah you want her, but she’s so mean.” Well nodoiii, of course she’s mean to you, you are in Matchbox Twenty, not One Direction.

Perhaps I’m being too hard on the band who found success during the era of Zubaz pants, bucket hats, and crop tops, (which are coming back, by the way, so maybe there is hope yet for MB20). The song is pretty conventional adult contemporary, with your typical catchy hooks and toe-tapping vibes. It’s the type of tune I imagine I would secretly sing along to when I’ve had a few alcoholic beverages…and then hate myself in the morning for it.

I was completely ready to let Matchbox Twenty settle into the dregs of the Alannis Morissette Pandora station, but here we are, nodding along and wondering how they are still clawing for relevance. Maybe for Matchbox Twenty fans, this could be a promising taste of what they’ve inexplicably been missing for the past decade. Check out their newest single “She’s So Mean” and decide for yourself if 90s adult contemporary is on the upswing.