My wife, daughter, and I went to see Ratatouille this weekend and one of the previews was for a live-action version of the fondly-remembered cartoon Underdog. Based on the preview, the new movie looks -- what's the critical phrase here? -- really crappy. The one and only upside is that a movie about a dog did not use the song "Who Let the Dogs Out?" in the preview. (Really, how did that not happen? The Baha Men must be looking for a new agent right about now.)
Still, the movie's producers are missing a great opportunity here -- the lead single off Austin City Limits Festival band Spoon's awesome awesome awesome album Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is entitled "The Underdog." And it rocks. The political subtext will go over the heads of the kids, but it's completely OK for 'em.
In case you haven't heard it, you can hear Spoon play with a horn section of about six dozen on Letterman's show here.
Or watch the original video (with apparently a Daniel Handler -- Lemony Snicket -- cameo at about 2:31) below:
Are Rufus Leaking and Meg White an Item?
I haven't spent nearly enough time talking about the inspired weirdness of Pancake Mountain, but for now, these YouTube videos will have to do.
And, frankly, with hipsters (The White Stripes, Wayne Coyne, Lily Allen, Lewis Black) at Bonnaroo, low-fi production values, and Rufus Leaking, the greatest goat this side of The Sound of Music, these clips pretty much tell you all you need to know.
Rufus and Meg don't exchange many words, but I think it's love...
Highlight on this one -- Wayne Coyne and friends singing "Daydream Believer"
Highlight here -- "John the Revelator" duet with the White Stripes and Rufus
(Thanks to Stereogum for the heads up.)
For what it's worth, the video below, the Mountain's first (going back a number of years), is -- all due respect to They Might Be Giants -- the best vowel song ever.
The Evens - "Vowel Movement"
I tell you, this idea of culturally cool stars on TV shows ostensibly for kids is such an invention of this generation of parents.
(Of course, at least we don't post Confederate flags in our music videos.)
A Tale of Two Songs (and Videos)
There are at least a couple videos for songs off the latest Putumayo collection for kids, Animal Playground (review).
The first is for Asheba's "No More Monkeys," a song which I freely admit that I don't like (and that, frankly, is putting it mildly. Which I do a lot.) The video is not without its charms, however, and I think it's fun for kids.
Now, the true discovery on the disk is the Be Good Tanyas' "The Littlest Birds," which was the leadoff track on their debut Blue Horse. This video, while kid-appropriate, isn't the most exciting in the world. But the song -- that song is great.
So here's the deal -- tell them you'll let 'em watch "No More Monkeys" if they watch "The Littlest Birds."
Because parenting is all about compromise.
(Thanks to Z Recommends for the heads-up on the Be Good Tanyas video.)
KidVid: "The Elephant Song" - Eric Herman
I've mentioned before how much I like "The Elephant Song" by Eric Herman. Very simple, a catchy melody, and an idea almost infinitely adaptable to whatever you want to sing about. ("Trucks, I love trucks, I love the way they zoom high through the clouds..." "The Diamondbacks, I love the Diamondbacks, I love the way they have a really high team batting average...")
Anyway, it's been around for awhile, but the song's video (animated by Eric's wife Roseann) hit the big time this week -- YouTube's front page.
It's the best hand-animated video since A-ha's "Take On Me," though its chunky computer animation is more "Money For Nothing," I suppose.
(Not-So-)KidVid: Laurie Berkner Meets Steven Spielberg...
Why Should Rockists-In-Training Have All The Fun?
I'm typically either way ahead or way behind of the curve 'round here. In this particular case, I'm behind the curve as I'm mentioning the Stagecoach Festival, the country festival put on by the Coachella folks the week after Coachella. The Festival which, uh, happened last weekend.
But I wanted to mention it because it showed that country music is beginning to realize that maybe there's a market opportunity for them, too. Stagecoach had its own kids' music stage which featured, among others, Buck Howdy, Farmer Jason, The Hollow Trees, and The Bummkinn Band. (My personal favorite amongst these? The Hollow Trees, who do hootenannies up right.)
I heard that Sharon, Lois & Bram were gonna reunite for the festival but got booed offstage by Rage Against the Machine fans who were still stuck in the parking lot leaving the Coachella show.
Did I just make a Sharon, Lois & Bram joke? Goodness, I have issues.
There are a whole bunch of YouTube videos from the festival, but they mostly involve guys like George Strait and Kenny Chesney and other men with large hats worn unironically. So I'll just leave you with this video of Farmer Jason (Jason Ringenberg of Jason and the Scorchers fame, for those of you new to this whole kids-music thing). He's got a hat, too, but he's playing in some guy's backyard.
The Wiggles, this genre ain't.
