This week Matt Booth and I "back-muse" Teenage Dirtbag, the self-produced, nakedly sensitive, “comfortably pathetic” song I ended up kind of loving. Matt remembers using these lyrics to experiment with cussing, and I remember how weird the song sounded to me as a kid.
We cover the violent DJ scribbling, superfluous (and completely inaudible) percussion instruments, “controversy” over the singer’s middle name, the teen-movie music video, the bizarre wikipedia/history of the band, an archived bio from their y2k webpage, and ironic sex.
Good music: Blink-182's new-ish single (with Matt Skiba) "Bored to Death"
“Were any of these scenes from the movie they’re referencing, or did they have to shoot a shitty movie and then shoot a whole shitty, involved music video too?”
This week Michael Muñoz returns to dissect childhood favorite “Slide” by the Gru Gru Dolls and its long-winded promises, half-assed marriage proposal, and very aggressive statements about abortion. We run down the ultra-literal music video, Johnny Goo’s terrible, “tattooable” quotes, and also just his terrible tattoos.
Plus: Now That’s What I Call Music Vs. Kidz Bop Vs. Jock Jams, more Simpsons references than you could ever want, and Alien Ant Farm renounces the IE.
Good music: O’Brother’s “Endless Light” and Autolux’s “P*ssy’s Dead”
Warning! Explicit Adam Sandler content!
This week we have a first for the show: a song by fart-comedy legend Adam Sandler called “Steve Polychronopolous.” My guest Leigh shares her storied personal history with the comedian, including the time his jokes grounded her for a year.
We also discuss a few of the eight-minute, one-note sketches found on this album, the merits of Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore, and the inexplicable hold he has on talented actors and comedians. How was there a clean version of this song? How is Will Forte in Ridiculous 6? Why do sharks exist?
Good music: Flight of the Conchords’ “Hurt Feelings” and Mastodon/Aqua Teen Hunger Force’s “Linoleum Knife”
This week Travis Duscay returns for our “spiritual” sequel to the Woodstock ’94 episode: Woodstock ’99!
We revisit the festival that qualified as an EPA Superfund site and was described by Kurt Loder as a “concentration camp” to analyze Creed and Robby Krieger's butt-rocking interpretation of "Riders on the Storm," as well as the band's christ-channeling, sex-shaming, mid-tempo slog, "What's This Life For."
Also: An Adam Baldwin/Mel Gibson/Simpsons Conspiracy Theory, Travis’ dad buying him a Phish album for his birthday, and misunderstandings of satirical news articles.