Though a follow-up to last year's "Transform" won't see the light of day until 2005, Powerman 5000 [ tickets ] fans are getting an earful of previously unreleased material this fall.

Late last month, the group issued "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly Vol. 1," a collection of b-sides and rarities that includes a cover of Bjork's "Army of Me," a former staple of the band's live setlist. The album's 20 tracks were recorded between 1991 and 1996, and feature the Boston quintet's original lineup: frontman Spider One, guitarist Adam 12, percussionist Jordan, bassist Dorian Heartsong and drummer Alan Pahanish.

"We were ahead of our time, behind our time, horrible and brilliant, all at once," Spider One writes in the album's liner notes. "We were the hardest working band in Boston and if you were lucky enough to be around in those days, you absolutely knew who we were. These tracks were left exactly as they were recorded, not a note has been altered. Hopefully this disc will give you a sense of what was a very exciting moment in time for a band called Powerman 5000."

The CD's front cover features a band shot from 1994, and the back cover features a collage of flyers and original illustrations that Spider One--brother of Rob Zombie--designed and printed to advertise the group's early shows in an around Boston, according to a press release.

The set marks the debut of Spider One's new indie label, Megatronic Records.

In addition to founding members Spider One and Adam 12, the group's current lineup features guitarist Mike, bassist Siggy and drummer Adrian (the band members use only first names and/or aliases). Jordan left the group in 1997, and Heartsong and Pahanish exited in late 2001.

Three new Powerman 5000 songs--"Last Night on Earth," "The Way That It Is" and "Riot Time"--turn up in the forthcoming Playstation 2 video game "WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw," which is due in stores on Nov. 2. The tracks will be heard throughout the game itself, and will also be used for the game's promotional trailer and online-advertising campaign, according to the band's publicist.

Spider One and Adam 12 are currently in the early stages of writing material for the group's fifth studio album, and plan to enter the studio to begin recording the set by the end of this year. An early 2005 release on Megatronic Records is planned.

Last year's "Transform" was Powerman 5000's third and final release for DreamWorks. The set sold about 170,000 copies and spawned the Top 10 Active Rock hit "Free." The group's previous releases for the label--1999's "tonight the Stars Revolt!" and 1997's "Mega!! Kung Fu Radio"--sold about 1.3 million and 158,000 copies, respectively.

Before signing with DreamWorks, Powerman 5000 released two successful indie-label collections: 1994's "True Force" (Curve of the Earth) and 1995's "Blood Splat Rating System" (Conscience).