Speaking of live music...These guys are coming to my area at the end of May. I'm thinking of seeing them, but when I go to concerts, I like to be familiar with an artist's entire catalogue. I'm a big fan of Boxer, and I'm definitely going to pick up Alligator. But I was wondering if their first two are worth picking up as well?

You should definitely pick up "Alligator", it's just as good as "Boxer". So for the first two, "Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers" is decent while the self-titled isn't that great. However, they all have a similar sound, so it's possible that you'll like the first two just as much.