Randor's Song of the Week: 02.05.12

"Planet Texas" by Kenny Rogers from the album Something Inside So Strong. 1989.
    Speaking of corny country music... Who hasn't made fun of "The Gambler"? The Mr. Rogers of Country has a Wisconsin-sized slough of cheese-laced hits though, and I'd sooner pick something like "Lucille" or "Coward of the County" to knock on. Heck, even the Dolly Parton duet "Islands in the Stream" floats atop the fondue flood, and only the semi-tribute "Ghetto Supatar" could hope to match Witz crackers and cheese with it. ...That is, until you hear "Planet Texas", which takes the cheesecake. I don't think you can even technically call this a country song! Ignore the creepy headshot album cover, and imagine all the maize produced in the U.S. Midwest. Now squish it all into the world's largest cornball. If you've never traversed the corn-producing states, I can assure you: that would be one massive ball of corn. It's only fitting, though, for if the Moon is made of cheese, Planet Texas must be made of corn.

Randor's Song of the Week: 10.30.11

"Whomp-a-saurus Sex" by Mochipet from the album Whomp-a-saurus Sex. 2011.
    I knew all week I wanted to feature a Halloween-y song, just like last year. You're no doubt sick of hearing the same ol' monster mash thriller that tends to pop up come October's end. Just based on the sheer magnitude of Christmas music and its radio-hijacking persistence in society, how come, then, the so-designed antithesis of the holly jolly season carries the musical weight consisting solely of classics on its Bach? (Ouch, forced pun). I've thus compiled a Halloween playlist that steps outside the usual bounds of tired tricks. Some mention of a Halloweeny trait qualifies a song (i.e. monsters and other spooky stuff), but an appropriate atmosphere can also let it past the bouncer. This makes anything from "All You Zombies" to "E.T." fair game in terms of scope. And while it would be fun to post the entire 10+ hour list here, well... that's not the purpose of these columns.
    This weekend I poked through the list and managed to get two worthwhile ditties stuck in my head. One of them now stands in the spotlight before you. The other you keen-eyed readers might have noticed among the TIME top 100 list bombarded by Djandor in her guest post: the 1977 political "Zombie" by Fela Kuti. Both the song and Kuti himself have spurned controversy, which I suggest you read on their respective Wikipedia articles for at least interest's sake. I suppose that's the reason why Mochipet gets the nod instead, though; Halloween has enough flak of its own without 40-year-old political embroilment. Yet, I wanted to second-place it officially for that jazzy, free-flowing style akin to the Return to Forever number I once featured. The societal meanings and undertones adds its own unique study, but again... save it for a heavier post. This one's about electronic dinosaurs.