You people can’t seem to read a full article these days unless it’s a Top 10 list. So The Bad Penny is jumping on the bandwagon from time to time and see if ours are as riveting as “Top 10 Substitutes for Mayonnaise,” “Top 10 Best Bob Seger Songs,” “Top 10 Ways to Sneeze Politely in Public,” etc.
Here’s our second one. We think. The first was abut clubs. We’re too lazy busy to comb through our labyrinthian archives to see if we’ve posted an edition during the sordid history of this website.
You people can’t seem to read a full article these days unless it’s a Top 10 list. So The Bad Penny is going to jump on the bandwagon from time to time and see if ours are as riveting as “Top 10 Substitutes for Mayonnaise,” “Top 10 Best Bob Seger Songs,” “Top 10 Ways to Sneeze Politely in Public,” etc.
Here’s our inaugural one. We think. We’re too lazy busy to comb through our labyrinthian archives to see if we’ve posted an edition during the sordid history of this website.
Sure, they may be one of the biggest rock bands in the world, but let’s get real: Have Queens of the Stone Age truly “made it”?
Some would argue no for the simple reason that, some 30 years into their career, “Weird” Al Yankovic still hasn’t made a parody of even one QOTSA song. It’s a critical rite of passage in pop music, and until it happens, a musical act really hasn’t achieved irrefutable commercial success.
In an effort to help QOTSA finally break that glass ceiling, and to inspire Al to write some quality new parodies, here are The Bad Penny‘s Top 15 choicest ideas for QOTSA parody songs:
Original: “Regular John” Parody: “Regular John Tesh“
Original: “Go With the Flow” Parody: “Go With the Flomax“
Original: “Better Living Through Chemistry” Parody: “Better Living Through Home Ec“
Original: “I Think I Lost My Headache” Parody: “I Think I Lost My Keys“
Original: “Avon” Parody: “The Avon Lady”
Original: “I Sat by the Ocean” Parody: “I Sat by Billy Ocean (On a Plane)”
Original: “Keep Your Eyes Peeled” Parody: “Keep Your Oranges Peeled“
Original: “How to Handle a Rope” Parody: “How to Handle a Rope-a-Dope“
Original: “No One Knows” Parody: “Owen’s Nose” (referring to actor Owen Wilson’s unusual facial appendage) • Fun fact: QOTSA frontman Josh Homme told me he especially enjoyed this one.)
Earlier this month, Richmond, Virginia’s Pyramid Mass dipped a ladle into their cauldron of blackened sludge, progressive metal, thrash, black metal, hardcore, avant-garde—Jesus, need we go on?—and poured a heaping helping of their lethal stew into a bowl beautifully named Gargling Rot. The wretched EP, issued by Ossien Records, contains five songs that would make for great house music in Guantánamo Bay. In other words, it’s killer.
Mastered by the legendary James Plotkin of Khanate, Gargling Rot is the chaser to 2023’s Monolith, the debut by the band consisting of Matt Wild (drums/vocals), Nick Crider (guitar/vocals) and Joey Anderson (bass/vocals/synth). The EP commands strict attention from start to finish, even though no matter how hard you concentrate on what Pyramid Mass are doing, you won’t be able to make sense of it. What better way to guarantee repeat spins of a record.
These brief video clips comprise a simple, terrifying tribute to one of America’s greatest auteurs: David Lynch, who died January 15 at 78 years old. Partially raised in Idaho, Lynch depicted nightmares onscreen with such fear-inducing flair that he ensured viewers had many more of them after watching his films.
FLOOD recently released its list of the top 50 albums that the outlet’s contributors determined mattered most in 2024. Expect it, once again, to be regarded as one of the more authoritative and reputed chronicles of the year in music.
What follows are my reviews of releases on the list, and a related interview to boot, that FLOOD published this year:
Infinite thanks for your support, and that of my invaluable editors at FLOOD and other outlets that tolerated my contributions, in 2024. It mattered this year more than ever before.
For my pre-2024 writings on the aforementioned artists and many more than appeared on other top 10 lists this year, go to my Interview Index and Reviews Archive.
Lastly, stay tuned for The Bad Penny‘s annual Top 10 Albums of the Year list for 2024. (That is, if you place any value in rundowns like those.)
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