Review Summary: The latest release by the king of parodies, Weird Al Yankovic, doesn't fail to impress. Some clever jokes here, and great parodies. Very, very funny overall.
It’s amazing how many things can make you laugh. From watching someone screw up in front of your math class to the unbelievably hilarious Dane Cook, there are many things that are funny. And, for the moment you’ve all been waiting for, there’s yet another thing out there that’s gonna make you laugh. What I’m talking about is the latest release from parody sensei Weird Al Yankovic, and it’s funny. We get a parody of R. Kelly, Chamillionaire, and (FINALLY!) Green Day, as well as some hilarious originals. Shall we take a look at each song? Let’s go!
White & Nerdy: Who
hasn’t heard this song? Possibly Al’s finest parody yet, which “remixes” Chamillionaire’s extremely popular
Ridin'. What makes the song so funny is that the lyrics are almost opposite to the attitude put on by Chamillionaire in his smash hit. White & Nerdy basically summarizes the life of a nerd. It’s a little stereotyped but pulled off superbly, stating that he’s the top of his class at MIT, rolls on a Segway, and will school you at ping-pong. Also, Al raps at the speed of light here, but is still comprehendible.
5/5
Pancreas: Here we have a song about Al’s pancreas. It’s funny how out of all the things that he can praise, he chooses to show his love for an organ in his digestive system, stating the wonderful functions the pancreas serves and how it “attracts every other pancreas in the universe”. Not much to say about a pancreas-worshipping song, other than it gets somewhat boring.
2.5/5
Canadian Idiot: Now this was predictable, but I’m still glad it happened. Here, we come across a fantastic parody of Green Day’s
American Idiot. The guitars in the song sound identical to those of the original, especially with the tone (unlike his other songs, where they had a heavier emphasis on overdrive). The song is, you guessed it, about Canadians, and the stereotypical view that America has on them. One of the greatest moments from the song is when he says “well they’ve got National Health Care; cheaper meds, low crime rates and clean air”. What makes it great though is that it basically names good things in a Canadian bashing song. It’s a hilarious song, but may be a little offensive to the sensitive Canadian (who doesn’t know what it really makes fun of).
4.5/5
I’ll Sue Ya: This is
Straight Outta Lynwood’s
Wanna B Ur Lovr. Instead of ridiculous pick-up lines, it’s ridiculous reasons to sue different companies. It’s also hard to believe where he came up with some of these excuses. For example, he sued Colorado for looking too much like Wyoming, and Delta Airlines for selling him a ticket to New Jersey… and the trip sucked. What also makes this song different from
Wanna B R Lovr though is that it has a very nu-metal sound. It combines rap elements with hard hitting guitars and cymbal crashes. It’s an original, but
I’ll Sue Ya’s chorus riff is very similar to that of P.O.D.’s
Masterpiece Conspiracy. Overall,
I’ll Sue Ya sums up to be the second funniest song on the album.
4.5/5
Polkarama!: Here we are. We get one with every album, it’s consisted of bits from tons of smash hit singles from popular artists. What is it? It’s Weird Al’s famous polkas of course! The tracks that he “polkafies” are the following:
The Chicken Dance
Let’s Get It Started – Black Eyed Peas
Take Me Out – Franz Ferdinand
Beverly Hills – Weezer
Speed of Sound – Coldplay
Float On – Modest Mouse
Feel Good Inc. – Gorillaz
Don’t Cha – Pussycat Dolls
Somebody Told Me – The Killers
Slither – Velvet Revolver
Candy Shop – 50 Cent
Drop It Like It’s Hot – Snoop Dogg
Pon De Replay – Rihanna
Gold Digger – Kanye West
Very good variety of songs here, and catchy as hell. Al doesn’t let us down in his polka work with this piece of art.
5/5
Virus Alert: This is where the album slows down in the sense of song quality after three amazing songs. It starts out with a catchy techno riff, and has a great tempo. However, the lyrics falter, because they get somewhat repetitive. There are some pretty funny lines (apparently, the virus causes a rift in time and space, and litters your house with Twinkie wrappers), but randomly naming consequences gets kind of old after a while. The song still can be funny though, and is rather catchy.
3/5
Confessions Part III: A parody of Usher’s
Confessions Part II. It’s about confessing to his wife about some funny stuff. He confesses that her diamond ring is made of cubic zirconium. He confesses that he urinated in her sink. He confesses that he gave her buttered toast he dropped on the floor. Some of the stuff he says is pretty funny, but can get repetitive at times. The instrumentation is good though, with great piano work and good electronic effects. Still somewhat of a letdown though.
3/5
Weasel Stomping Day: The shortest song on
Straight Outta Lynwood, and also a pretty good one too. The mood of the song is hysterical when paired up with the lyrics – mainly because the cheerful sound of the track completely contradict the gruesome lyrics.
Weasel Stomping Day sounds like a Christmas song gone
insane. It’s about a holiday in which people… you guessed it… stomp on weasels. Although the song is short, it’s sweet, encouraging people to go out and slam their feet down on those pesky weasels. The bridge consists of the sounds of weasels being crushed under the overjoyed weasel-hating people. However, the song is a bit short, although there isn’t really much you can sing about when it comes to an imaginary holiday when people fulfill that urge to stomp on weasels.
3.5/5
Close But No Cigar: This song begins with a nice riff, and breaks out into a funky verse. It’s about an
extremely picky man who dates the women of his dreams, but dumps them for hilarious reasons. Jillian says “infer” instead on “imply”, Janet owns a DVD of Joe Dirt, and one of Julie’s ear lobes were a little too big. They’re close, but they just don’t fit the bill for Al. Again, a little repetitive, but still good for laughs.
4/5
Do I Creep You Out: A parody of Taylor Hick’s
Do I Make You Proud. The songs starts off like a corny love ballad, and it turns out it’s about a man obsessing over a girl, and finally gathering up the courage to ask her a very important question… do I creep you out? We’re pretty sure about what her answer’s gonna be, since he stalks her, keeps her gum that she disposed of, and carves her name into her leg. A very funny song here, but no one should get any ideas from it.
4/5
Trapped In The Drive-Thru: You know how I said
White & Nerdy might be Al’s best parody? Well, here’s the competition. You probably guessed what the (arguably) best song on
Straight Outta Lynwood makes fun of. That’s right –
Trapped in the Closet by R. Kelly. Coming off as the second longest song in Weird Al’s discography (coming up behind
Running With Scissor’s near-twelve minute epic
Albuquerque). The comedy comes from Weird Al just mindlessly rambling about going to the drive-thru, and having some problems ordering. The story is interrupted by random things like Al’s cell phone ringing and him letting the call go to voicemail, discussing a man named Paul with the cashier, and falling short of the price of his order. Although it’s long, it doesn’t get boring, with it’s random interruptions and the ridiculous subject.
5/5
Don’t Download This Song: I find it ironic that this song goes against what made it a big track – downloading songs. Well, it’s against the illegal variety, so I guess it really isn’t ironic. Well, anyway, it’s a song about the consequences of illegally downloading songs, and some of them are pretty far-fetched (you’ll get into drug dealing and hit and run). The song gets a little repetitive, but it’s catchy. The vocal work on the song are excellent, with the whole band belting out the chorus. A great downloadable download bashing song, but not the best song on the album.
3.5/5
Weird Al doesn’t fail to impress on his latest release, putting out some funny stuff. Some of his best parodies (and probably his very best) are on this album, but the songs may get a little repetitive after a while. Still, brilliant jokes here, and definitely recommended for those who want yet another comedic thing in their lives. Hope you enjoy.
Recommended Tracks
Trapped In The Drive-Thru
White & Nerdy
Polkarama!
Canadian Idiot
