A song-by-song of the album, by me, since I'm not sure on favorites (I know I probably misquoted some lyrics. Always happens with me):
Trogdor - I actually like the extended version. Maybe not as punchy and direct as the original, but the added flourishes are a nice touch. Besides, who can honestly hate the Squeedly vs. Deedly interlude? SQUEEDLY WINS!
The System is Down - I enjoy the extended mix a lot more than the original, mostly due to the better samples and even more thorough mockery of techno. The "Dance revolution!" and "FOOTBALL!" samples are the absolute best. The breakdown at the end is also pretty amusing.
Strong Badia National Anthem - I'm a big fan of the original, and while I do like the piano stylings of "Mr. Cheaterson," it doesn't add a whole lot to the original, though Strong Bad's nasty remarks about the kids are fun, as always.
Oh Yeah, Yeah - Marzipan has a punk side?! Who'd have ever guessed? I mean, she DID dress up as Joey Ramone that one Halloween, but...
I digress. The song is nice and punchy, the instruments are tight, and Missy Palmer proves herself to be a great punk grrl vocals-wise. Now if only the lyrics were a little less repetitive. Oh well.
Because It's Midnite - HEART OF A LION, AND THE WINGS OF A BAT! For all my hatred of hair bands, this song is completely awesome. It manages to synthesize every horrible hair band cliche into a completely awesome 3 minute song. Quite possibly one of the best songs on the entire album.
Circles - Like with Limozeen and The System is Down, we find cliches being exploited and turned into comedy gold. Pure white-boy blues here, complete with acoustic guitars and harmonicas. Manages to improve on the original song in almost every way on top of things. Hooray.
Let's Get Started On Doing All Those Awesome Things I Suggested - Could've been a great soul/R&B parody, but they had to cut it short. Feh. At least we have the intro to always remember.
Moving Very Slowly - Good old heavy metal. Along with the prerequisite mythology and fantasy references, we have huge, sludgy guitars and a vocalist pretty similar to James Hetfield of Metallica. Couldn't get a better parody if you tried, unless we're talking the pseudo-band Beatallica.
Sweet Cuppin' Cakes Theme Song - Eh. It's a goofy TV show theme, that's true, and I do like having Bubs and Cowcopter in a song. I also like the lines about "Just-say-no-in'!" In the end, though, it just doesn't grab my interest much. Plus, they should've used the actual Eh! Steve voice at the end of the song.
I Think I Have a Chance with This Guy - Lots of people love to rip on this song. While it's definitely not the best song on the album, I still have something of a soft spot for it, but that just might be my love for the Teen Girl Squad. Besides, you have to love some of the fun lyrics.
It's Like It Was Meant to Be - I'm surprised they didn't have Limozeen do the parody of the rock ballad, but this works exceptionally well anyway. It does prove my suspicion that Strong Bad has a singing voice that sometimes cleaves pretty close to Tom Waits, and there's some classic lines: "I'll never stop kidding- I mean, I'll stop kidding!"
NITE MAMAS - Even more 80s hair band parodying, and this one's almost better than the last one, what with the multitracked vocals and all. You can barely understand the lyrics sometimes, but geez, most songs by hair bands were almost unbelievably vapid in the first place, so it's not like you'd be missing much.
Sensitive to Bees - You have to love the Strong Bad comments. "Oh, cute, CUTE, and cute! You're, like, some sort of poet laureate!" Plus, Strong Bad actually singing along at the end was priceless, as was Homestar's clueless singing along and lyrical messups.
You've Got an Ugly and Stupid Butt - Eh. Not much to this one. The Buster Poindexter stylings near the end are pretty amusing, yeah, but otherwise, this song's nothing.
These Peoples Try to Fade Me - I could use a dollar, I could use a couple bucks. We discover exactly why this was a "hit single." Coach Z is actually a pretty competent rapper and some of the rhymes and stuff are just classic. Have to love the oldschool stylings too, and the ending. "I can flow. I can freak. Uhh... I can freak and flow at the same time?" Plus, the Powered By the Cheat video is pretty amusing. I wish TBC would've written Hip Hop Dance in time for it to be on the CD as I like that song even more, but oh well, you can't have everything.
The Ladies in Town All Know My Name - I forgot what this song sounded like. It was probably as unremarkable as most of the other songs from the original Strong Bad Sings toon, though.
The Theme from DANGERESQUE II: This time, it's not Dangeresque I - Pretty good. Not really much better than it was the first time around, but still pretty fun, especially with lines like "He fights the law, and the crime, but not as much" and "Stick it to the man!"
Somebody Told Me (Now I Believe Them) - You know, after parodying so many other genres so well, you'd think that they could nail country without a hitch. No such luck. Oh well.
The Cheat is Not Dead - The additional lyrics are pretty cool, and the gospel singers are also a nice touch, especially the ending. They could've done a BIT more with it, but otherwise, there's not really anything to complain about.
Everybody to the Limit (Live) - Aw yeah. From the Frampton Comes Alive squawkbox guitar at the beginning to the funky guitar line to the audience participation, this song is totally awesome. Manages, like Circles, to completely improve on the original in every way, and an excellent way to close the album out... OR IS IT?
Secwet Song - Good ol' Homestar. You knew he had to pop up somewhere, and as always he brings a smile to my face. He's just so earnest and lovable. This song is truly, as Homestar says, "the secwetest song on the album."
|
