Muzak from Beck to Beach Boys

The video for Beck's "Up All Night" reminded me of nothing so much as Fiona Apple's "Criminal".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tj08Ni3tklw

(Remember the incredible buzz surrounding Fiona back in the late 90s?  I love how one person explained Fiona's "disappearance" by noting that she didn't go anywhere, we just stopped listening.)  I don't have space for both of these videos, so cue them up back to back and convince yourself.  I wanted to instead expose any forgotten Fiona fans to her underappreciated cover of the Beatles' "Across the Universe", whose obvious drug-induced lyrics reminded me of nothing so much as the mind-warping, way overlooked Beach Boys anthem "Feel Flows", which Cameron Crowe was spot on in hand-selecting for the "Almost Famous" end credits.
The vandalism of the soda shop in "Across the Universe" is an obvious oblique reference to "Pleasantville" (this song anchored that soundtrack, in case you stopped remembering)  - In places, and for once, Fiona wasn't so artificially brooding, and seemed to actually be having fun.
There are moving picture versions of the "Feel Flows" video out there, but the title card with the adolescent (well, she was 21 at the time, but looks like a preternatural Betty Boop) yet all-too-aware Kate Hudson parted-lips visage is the clear visual winner.  Aphrodisiac indeed.  (Get back to YouTube if you need to decipher more than half of these lyrics, or just put any album in the back window of a car with the windows rolled up on a hot day and write your own, based on a description of what you find.) "Feel Flows", naturally, triggered the memory (drug-induced lyrics are apparently good for something) of my all-time favorite Brian Wilson song "Caroline No".  If you're a Brian Wilson fan, you've worn out the needle on his heart-wrenchingly perfect version, so instead, here's a less painful cover performed by the harmonically-blessed trio America.  Enjoy at work, kind of an apologetic mishmash mix-tape .

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Johanna writes

The Estes Park Economic Development Corporation (EPEDC) is patting itself on the back because "the award for 'Small Community of  the Year' was presented" to them by the Economic Development Council of Colorado (EDCC) "on behalf of a town that sets its sights on building a more resilient, inclusive, and vibrant community and economy after recovering from the devastating Colorado floods in 2013." How has the following economic development been beneficial to Estes Park? The Estes Park Event Center, completed in spring 2014, has not brought all the big events expected from outside of our community.  It is not profitable. The Estes Park Medical Center (i.e., Park Hospital District) did not have the money to build the EPMC/Anschutz Wellness Training Center within the two years specific in the "Contract for Sale of Lot 4" to John Cullen, owner of the Stanley Hotel (i.e., Grand Heritage Hotel Group, LLC).  Since the money was not raised, according
Read more

I'm always fascinated by the question of why Marie Cenac entered local politics

Image
Trustee Cenac is very anti-government involvement in constituents' problems, which is interesting, since she takes up one of the precious six seats on the town board, which is ostensibly a local government entity, organized to protect and serve the local taxpayers. If you go back through any noise ordinance discussion over the past six years, you will find, without fail, when she buzzes in to talk (and she never feels uncompelled to share this laissez faire opinion), that she constantly and consistently lectures the audience on where they choose to live determining whether they have any right to complain. This is known as victim blaming - If you are raped, it is because of the way you dress, if your business is vandalized by a customer bent on destruction, it is because your windows aren't strong enough to withstand getting hit with a large rock, and, God forbid, if you can't tolerate 14 straight hours of 100+ decibel noise, it is because your ears are pansies and you pic
Read more

Okay so I'll say it

Image
Jeez we have a bunch of milquetoast pretend journalists in town. The guy who was arrested locally a few clicks back, Keaton M.A. Krell, is the same guy who sexually assaulted a bunch of underage females in Linn County, Kansas, and, brazenly, got away with it. The airtight connection is through his wife or ex-wife or whoever star pupil and non-profit wunderkind Candace Krell is. But even then, c'mon, how many folks named Keaton M.A. Krell are running around diddling little girls? Get some cojones, POR (paper of record) and POR (podcast of record). You did the work (sort of) now publish the findings. Stop hiding behind the town as an excuse to avoid going to press - the PIO and TA aren't going to give you anything because they are scared of their own shadows. For the low IQ crowd and too easily unconvinced: Note how Candace Krell used to give her home address on LinkedIn as Estes Park, Colorado Here's another big whoopsie And this And this And this
Read more