io9
I am totally in love with this band Goblin Cock, whose entire goal in life is to sing about geeky topics in a register that can only be described as Spinal Tappian. This video from their song "Stumped" contains every possible great thing: druids, comic book stores, women's softball, robots, and street fights. I guess you could call this the other side of nerdcore — the side that's all about rock and roll, man. The side that has its roots in the darkest of the dark geek arts: filk music.
Just yesterday, BoingBoing's Xeni Jardin posted a great show from a local filk convention, where old-school filkers told her the story behind the word "filk" and explained the more traditional side of filking. It's strange to think bands like Goblin Cock have their roots in songs about cats and UNIX, but it's obvious they do. Similarly, heavy metal and hard rock owe a lot to folk and country music.
Comments
Idiosyncratic Bowel!
Ah. Time for a shameless plug for one of my all-time, favorite singers, Jonathan Coulton. His songs, like RE: Your Brains and Skullcrusher Mountain are brilliant filk.
[www.jonathancoulton.com]
Filk is probably the only form of music where the entire genre needs a Blutarsky performed on it.
when asked about her experiences at the filk convention one maiden offered this response:
"Oh, I am afraid our life must seem very dull and quiet compared to yours. We are but eightscore middle-aged nerds and geeks, all between 27 and 48 and 1/2, cut off in this convention with nothing to do but compose crappy music. Oooh... it is a lonely life: 'composing,' screeching like a cat, cosplaying, provoding camera men with upskirt shots of our underwear. We are just not used to real life."
I honestly cannot stop rocking out to Judgment Day. Get those boys a record deal!
HUZZAH!!!!
Speaking of geek and music... anyone see the Heavy Metal South Park last night?
@Garrison Dean: I did, it rocked me like a hurricane, and I've been listening to my Heavy Metal mix tape all morning.
I lie. I broke down and bought the CD years ago. I'm a traitor to the 80's.
Don't forget AeroSITH!
[aerosith.com]
They are going to be at I-Con Stonybrook next month. Where I hope to finally pay Harlan Ellison back for calling me a Nazi.
took me a minute to realize there were two videos playing at once. I was beginning to wonder why it all sounded so... random...
@btgoss: i dunno, i think you're just lucky that Ellison didn't demand payment for the privilege of being called a Nazi.
Wow, it's great to see Rob Crow (Goblin Cock) mentioned on here. That guy is so underestimated.
@workingonyourinvoice: Yeah, I have the same problem when I play videos. Apparently many people do not have this problem, however, and that is why this bug remains unfixed. :(
@dead_red_eyes: I think they're local to me in the SF Bay, so I'm hoping to catch a show sometime.
@Plague:
Agreed. Seeing Blutarsky smash that cello would be seriously cathartic. George Romero would probably join in.
There used to be some group years ago that played music like this, except they were females and wore really revealing clothes. I liked them way better.
OK, I'll fess up that I'd never even heard of filk. Checked out the Wikipedia entry and got oh so many laughs. I worked in the music biz for over ten years and never heard a word about any of these bands. Talk about a sub-culture. Right up there with chiropodists who play bluegrass with their feet.
Who saw some good filk at SxSW a couple of weeks back? Reports, please. Or is Wonder Con where these groups get gigs?
I wouldn't call Goblin Cock "filk"--unless you want to include Black Sabbath, Danzig, the Misfits, Gwar & Rob Zombie in that category as well, as all have sung about the glories of trash pop culture.
"Traditional" filk's doom/nerdiness lies in the fact its earliest "stars" are firnly rooted in the nerdiest of 20th Century musical movements: pre-Dylan Folk Music. Not even Dylan-era or folk-rock.
"Filking" sounds like it should be much dirtier than it is. I'm so disappointed.
Goblin Cock rocks!!!
I interviewed Rob Crow from Goblin Cock (as well as his other bands Pinback, Thingy, Optiganally Yours, Heavy Vegetable, Other Men) awhile back on Starwars.com about his appreciation for all things geeky like X-wings and his DIY Darth Vader suit he had as a kid if any of you are interested in reading it here:
[www.starwars.com]
Haha, I had the video issue for once too, I was hearing the Judgement Day music while watching the Goblin Cock video, that was pretty cool, didn't realize there was a problem until the video stopped and the music kept going.
@Cacafuego: Well Gwar might fit because they are so campy. But none of those other bands you name sing about being nerds.
@bonniegrrl: Yay! I sort of want to ask Rob Crow to marry me. But I think he's out of my league.
Hey Annalee, yer a SF local gal, ever see this act?
[www.capturedbyrobots.com]
sweeeeet.
Weird, having the multiple video playing issue on the zombie penis story too, but didn't happen with the Charlie Jade story. I don't usually have any problems with it. Using Firefox 2.0.0.13, updated last night I think.
Filk just makes me sad. Those poor people...
@Annalee Newitz:
I've met Glen Danig and Rob Zombie. Believe me, these guys were geeks/nerds growing up, too. They just spent more time in the garage playing music than in the basement playing D&D. There lies the divergence between filking about Bilbo and heavy metal songs about Famous Monsters of Filmland.
@Cacafuego: Glen Danzig is usually selling comics at Comic-Con which is always a surreal moment to see him: [flickr.com]
If you like spooky gothic string metal it doesnt get better than Rasputina!
[rasputina.com]
Translyvanian Concubine... you know what flows there like wine:
[rasputina.com]
The Sword deserves mention also. With song names like The Frost Giants Daughter how can you go wrong? Oh did I mention they friggin rock too?
[www.swordofdoom.com]
[www.myspace.com]
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