"Weird Al" Yankovic, MANDATORY FUN

Have you imagined Lorde singing about tinfoil, or Pharrell listing ways to be obnoxious?  Probably not -- but "Weird Al" Yankovic has, and he offers up his traditional mix of song parodies and original comedy on his new album Mandatory Fun.  And, also traditional for "Weird Al," it's funny as hell.

While "Weird Al" is best known for parody, he does terrific original creations about half the time, and that's true on Mandatory Fun.  "Sports Song" is every sports fan's us-versus-them anthem (literally, since it never specified the team -- or even the sport -- being discussed).  "Lame Claim to Fame" is a listing of pathetic encounters with celebrities, while "Mine Own Eyes" are bizarre things the singer has seen.  "Mission Statement" puts together enough corporate jargon for a year of Dilbert strips in one upbeat pop song.  "First World Problems" has people who have it really well finding things to complain about (and sounds remarkably like the Pixies). " And the album ends with the pseudo-epic romance tune "Jackson Park Express," where people sitting across from each other on a bus try to read each other's facial expressions.  ("I arched my eyebrow ever-so-slightly, which was my way of asking/'Do you want my old Hewlett-Packard printer?'")  While some of these were one-joke lists, most of these songs are pretty amusing.

And "Weird Al" really excels at mimicking and twisting popular songs.  He turns Iggy Azalea's "Fancy" into a home-fixing song ("Handy"), makes Imagine Dragon's "Radioactive" into the lazy "Inactive" ("I'm waking up in Cheeto dust/my belly's covered with pizza crust"), and Robin Thicke's raunchy "Blurred Lines" into a critique of grammar and spelling (shown below).  And numerous current songs get polka-ized into the "NOW That's What I Call Polka" medley.  These really sound close to the originals, while making them so amusing it's impossible to listen to the original songs the same ways again.

Mandatory Fun may not be mandatory, but it sure is fun.  This album is pretty consistent and quite amusing too.

Overall grade: A-
Reviewed by James Lynch

Top 10 CD's of 2006

Hello and Happy New Year. As promised, it's time for the annual Top 10 CD list. Given the predominance of iTunes and iPods and single-song downloads, it's easy to be concerned that the album is becoming a lost art. Commercially there may be an element of truth to that, but I've reviewed plenty of albums this past year that are worth enjoying as a whole, not piecemeal. And as always, I have much more respect for artists who can impress me for forty minutes at a time, rather than just four.

I've reviewed nine of these albums already, and the tenth was reviewed here by Jim Lynch, so I don't have to go into any lengthy descriptions.

1. The Ditty Bops, Moon Over The Freeway. They're clever, they're funny, and they have to many good songs to ignore.



2. Johnny Clegg, One Life. I'm always happy when an old stand-by returns to form in a big way.




3. Dion, Bronx In Blue. He's always been a great singer, but I was really impressed with his guitar-playing on this one.



4. Värttinä, Miero. They're doing some U.S. shows this month, so keep your eyes open. The review was posted in Green Man Review.



5. Merrie Amsterburg, Clementine and Other Stories. Like Bronx in Blue, this album brings the musical traditions of America's past into the 21st century.


6. Loreena McKennitt, An Ancient Muse. Another unique artist makes a fine return.




7. Weird Al Yankovic, Straight Outta Lynwood. His biggest hit, only twenty-five years after his first album. Even people like me who loved his first record assumed at the time that he was just a novelty act. I guess we were wrong.

8. Maria Kalaniemi, Bellow Poetry. To really hear this one, turn the lights out and shut off all sound.




9. Amy Speace, Songs For Bright Street. A sharp wit and some good melodies should have gotten her more attention than she has to this point.



10. Neko Case, Fox Confessor Brings The Flood. Eerie and Cryptic, but also compelling.

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The Top 10 CD's of 2005

"Weird Al" Yankovic, STRAIGHT OUTTA LYNWOOD

When you hear several music hits of diverse genres blended together into a polka, that can mean only one thing: “Weird Al” Yankovic has a new album out. With STRAIGHT OUTTA LYNWOOD, the great weird one is back in form, providing hilarious songs – both parodies and originals.

Rapper Chamillionaire established his street cred with the song “Ridin,” and “Weird Al” effortlessly uses the same sound to establish his geekiness with “White & Nerdy” (“I order all of my sandwiches with mayonnaise/I’m a whiz at Minesweeper, I could play for days”). Other musical victims include Green Day (whose angry political message gets transformed into an anti-Canadian tune), Taylor Hicks, Usher, and R. Kelly. As always, “Weird Al” and his band match the music perfectly while creating hysterical lyrics.

Never content to just parody, “Weird Al” offers several fresh songs here too. “Weasel Stomping Day” is a joyous celebration of a truly… unique holiday. Computer users will appreciate “Virus Alert,” warning all of the latest threatening computer virus (“It’ll make your keyboard all sticky/give your poodle a hickey/and invest all your cash in stock in Euro Disney”). Other tunes cover excessively picky boyfriends, massive litigation, and the dangers of downloading. (Sadly, the album’s weak point is the original “Pancreas,” a faux love song to a favorite organ.)

As with all “Weird Al” albums, there is a level of topicality to the parodies: They’re great now, but they lose some of their edge when the originals become forgotten or dated. Some parodies also work better than others depending on your enjoyment of the originals: I for one could have managed without a R. Kelly parody that’s over eight minutes long. With that in mind, STRAIGHT OUTTA LYNWOOD is another wonderful comedy album that’ll have you laughing out loud. Stay weird, “Weird Al”!

(There’s a bonus DVD with animated videos for several of the songs. Sadly, the video for “White & Nerdy” was left off, and much of the animation is cheap. But it’s worth it just to watch the show ROBOT CHICKEN bring “Weasel Stomping Day” to life.)

Overall Grade: A-