Fans of seminal garage-rock and rocking-soul — especially of the Ann Arbor-Detroit variety — are probably in hog heaven right about now, soaking up the sounds from the newly-released, two-disc Rationals anthology, "Think Rational." Whatever generation you belong to, if you've lived around here long enough, you know that the Rationals, fronted by the charismatic Scott Morgan, were one of the key bands of the 1960s proto-punk/garage-rock revolution.

And of course Morgan continues to be a stalwart of the Ann Arbor music scene.

The set consists of 34 tracks — at least half of them previously unreleased, including several demos and alternate takes. The set has been long in the works, slowed by licensing issues with the old A-Square Records label.

The Rationals were masters at gleefully grabbing popular blues and soul tunes by the throat — and then seriously scruffing them up, almost always turning them into something that sounded much more dangerous than the originals. One example is this mid-'60s medley of Howlin' Wolf's swampy "Smokestack Lightnin'" and the Animals' foreboding "Inside Looking Out." And rest assured, this fiery medley is represented on the new anthology.

Check out the insinuating bass line, the whomping beat, the wailing blues-harp, and the frazzled, extended, psychedelic guitar freak-out in the middle-section jam that is sure to sizzle your speakers. And as usual, Morgan's vocals amazingly manage to somehow sound urgent and offhanded at the same time.

For more info on the new anthology, go to the The Rationals website.