The logic behind this album is that the structure of the typical pop song is the same as that of commercial jingles, except that the pop song repeats the chorus-verse sequence 3 times. This album consists of 40 “pop songs” that are exactly one minute long each, and in which none of the elements are repeated. To call these “pop songs” is definitely a bit of a stretch, however.
One of the more celebrated of the concept albums The Residents pumped out during the their peak, The Commercial Album is an experiment in boiling the pop song down to its fundamentals and ignoring its repetitious nature. Sadly, it basically fails, remaining an album that's much more interesting than it is enjoyable. Ultimate this just feels like forty out-takes, none of them particularly notable. This is far from a bad record, but The Residents have made at least three other albums that blow this out of the water.
An album with a clever concept, The Residents being one of the most mysterious and bizarre bands ever, have expressed their distaste with mainstream pop music on more than a few occasions. And on this album, they decided to make 40 one minute "commercial pop songs" poking fun at the simplicity and basic formula of most pop music. Although the album alone is pretty good, watching the creative and equally strange music videos that accompany each song makes for an even better experience
