Anyone familiar with KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas knows that the famed L.A. radio station doesn't give acoustic concerts, so don't go into The Best of the KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas expecting live unplugged renditions of alt-rock hits from Blink 182, Everlast, Garbage, Hole, and Radiohead. Instead, this is a straight-ahead collection of live performances of modern rock hits, mostly from the late '90s -- "Dammit," "Stupid Girl," "What It's Like," "Doll Parts," "Walking on the Sun," "Spiderwebs," "I Will Buy You a New Life," "Everything Zen," "The Distance," "Fake Plastic Trees," "I Alone," and "Blister in the Sun." Nobody tries to rearrange the songs, so there's no great revelations here, just solid performances that are entertaining but not quite as good as the original recorded versions. Still, anyone familiar with KROQ's Christmas concerts -- or anyone that is dedicated fan of any of the featured artists -- will find this an enjoyable souvenir. Just don't think that it's either acoustic or a Christmas album. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide