There's a blog post below on a different topic, but first I have to ask: did anyone else hear Erran Baron Cohen on Fresh Air Thursday night? Oh man. If you liked Spinal Tap, you've got to hear it.
EBC thinks of himself as a keen musical talent who breaks new ground by weaving cultural influences into something new and "transformative." His pitch for his having a diverse musical background? He played trumpet in high school band, lived in Tel Aviv for a while, and has seen both Miles Davis and Afrika Bambaataa in concert. (By that standard, I am committing a great crime by hiding my blinding beacon of euterpean prowess beneath a bushel basket.) And the music! Clips from his band ZOHAR ("world fusion beat scientists") would have sounded interesting — but not more than interesting — in 1998. Today they sound like a Garage Band demo. And the album he was there to promote, a collection of original and "reimagined" Hannukah songs, is unintentional self-parody at its best. Witness (the rap begins at about 1:24):
Either that or Erran Baron Cohen is an even more dedicated comic genius than his brother.
Here's what I set out to post: we have gotten a whole lot out of the They Might Be Giants "Here Come the 123s" DVD. (Thanks for the tip, KT!) Sg likes it a lot, and asks to watch it. The thing is that the songs are mostly pretty good, and I find myself humming them during the day. Below the fold (click "continue reading" if this looks like the end of the post) are a couple of videos from the related podcast, along with the song on the DVD that is (I think) better without the video.
