my kingdom for a “raza skoota”

I found this gem of a video while conducting my daily “trolling” of the Internet. Aside from being totally absurd, this video kindly reminded me of when I tried to create a mock euro-trash DJ alter-persona known as DJ Sprinkles several years back. Armed with my fabulously gay hype-man/keyboardist (Eric, I’m looking at you), DJ Sprinkles was able to produce one mind-blowing song/music video: “Das ist Meat”. Despite rave reviews by my hype-man, the career of Germakistani (Half Pakistani, Half German, duh) DJ Sprinkles was short lived. Perhaps one day when I will upload the awesomeness that is “Das ist Meat.”

Despite my nostalgia for DJ Sprinkles, it is evident the boys over at the Handsome Sportz Klub take the whole faux euro-trash responsibilities very seriously. Never has a chorus been so touching as when it states:

“I ride my raza skoota through ze night, to get to your heart, to get to heart.”

I enjoy this video on several levels, but foremost for embracing the whole tongue-in-cheek humor of it all. Key points to be made:

1. Why does Dusseldorf look like Gotham City as the digital intro to the video implies?
2. The fashion style of the Handsome Sportz Klub falls somewhere between Falco and the Beastie Boys.
3. Are these Americans poking fun at 80’s German pop muzak (their German sounds pretty decent, but a final ruling is required by Sarcascio’s fiancé, who in fact is German) or Germans making fun of 80’s German pop muzak (even better)?
4. The post-apocalyptic opening scene is only made all the more complete by the presence of “raza skootas”.
5. The dancing ladies in black seem to allude to Robert Palmer’s notoriously bad 80’s music video “Addicted to Love”.

With those points made, enjoy:

shit, what music will i tell my children to listen to when they ask me about this decade?

It’s been a while since I’ve updated this little blog and I blame it on my sly mistress whom I call “chronic laziness”. To be honest, I’m kind of embarrassed to say that I haven’t really been following pop/crap culture in recent weeks. However, today I stumbled upon a pretty decent find while trolling the Internet. It seems British artist Adele is kind of the “it” girl right now, and has been the “it” girl in progressive circles for some time. Sorry, I guess I’m late to the party and a buck short (typical).

Anyway, the main point I bring up Adele is her single “Rolling in the Deep.” I’ll admit, at the beginning of the song I was thinking to myself, “Hmm…Kinda dark smoky voice, bluesy, I likey.” Then the first chorus rolled up around the 1:00 mark and I couldn’t help but think that this song reminded me A LOT of another song. This of course led me on a 25 minute Internet safari until I finally found the song I was looking for, the ever famous “Gimme Shelter” by the Rolling Stones.

Released in 1969, “Gimme Shelter” definitely has this ominous feel. According to a Rolling Stone interview with Mick Jagger in 1995, Jagger described the ever present violence of the era, highlighted by the war in Vietnam, and that it was kind of an “end-of-the-world” song. I know, I know, it’s very easy to sit back with decades of time on your side and proclaim that the 60’s and 70’s were filled with rock classics, each conveying important political and social commentary simply not found in today’s music. Trust me, I’m sure there was a lot of shit music back then to, but nobody remembers shit music 30-40 years later.

However, a question remains, “Why hasn’t there been any quality, symbolic period music for the 2000-2010 decade?” I mean, this past decade (especially as an American) was wrought with major political and social events. Think: 9/11, the Iraq War, the Afghanistan War, the entire “War on Terror” mentality, the election of the first African-American president, etc. I mean, you would think such major events would inspire some really great music; songs that would stand the test of time much like the classics from the 1960’s and 1970’s. I’m talking about that instant kind of mental connotation that Jimi Hendrix’s “All Along the Watchtower” conveys. I mean, for fuck’s sake, the first time I heard that song I instantly imagined rows of Huey helicopters flying through dense forests (and this is coming from someone whose parents were barely teenagers during the Vietnam War. Furthermore, the only time I’ve actually seen a Huey is at air shows).

Interestingly, it seems that Nirvana, especially their single “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, is being incorporated into the historical lexicon as the representative “period” music of the early 1990’s (I’m sure some people will disagree with this). But it remains to be seen what, if any, true period songs will arise from the recently passed 2000-2010 decade.

If any of you guys know of any, please let me know. Below, for your pleasure, are Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep”, the Rolling Stones “Gimmie Shelter” and finally, a mash-up of both. I think the mash-up clears up any doubts you may be having over whether the two songs sound eerily similar.