Gary Numan's been seeing quite a resurgence in popularity among goth kids as of late. His music's always been a little underappreciated, so maybe it's time for the one- hit wonder to make a comeback. Not really a fan of early '80s synth music? Worry not, friend. What isn't commonly known about Numan is that beyond his trademark digital FX lies an extraordinary songwriter.

Random is a two- disc compilation of covers of Numan's songs. And it's got a bit of star power behind it. Wanna know who? St. Etienne, Magnetic Fields, The Orb, Dubstar, and Bis, for starters. Oh, and Weezer's Matt Sharp and Blur's Damon Albarn collaborate on "We Have A Technical."

So, if you find yourself unable to get into Numan's musik, these new versions make for the perfect format in which to re-evaluate your opinion. Random, in providing some variety in musical genres, proves to even the most anti- goth, anti- synth listeners that there's more to this guy than "Cars."

-Ryan Schreiber