Is This Destined to Be the Summer Party Song of 2024?
Disco nostalgia and metal insanity just had a love child: Song of the Week
When I first heard that Babymetal and Electric Callboy were about to release a collaboration, I thought “That is the most batshit crazy thing I’ve heard of in a long time.” Well, I was right.
I wrote about Electric Callboy recently, in my article on metalheads and humor (no, it’s not an oxymoron).
Picture a cross between late 70’s disco, Slayer and Wayne’s World. Plus other stuff—they even rap. Their performances are meticulously planned and executed but look completely unhinged. In a word, they have made metal silly.
Babymetal are one of Japan’s major cultural exports. They consist of three multi-talented young women who perform highly choreographed dance moves while singing pop verses over a thunderous bedrock of heavy metal. Yes, you are right, none of this sounds like it makes any sense. Actually, the incongruity of their appearance (tiny, beautiful anime superheroes) and their sound (loud and generally brutal) is sort of the whole point.
Putting these two bands together was like squeezing fifty years of incompatible music genres into one song. How could it possibly work? Then I watched it. Imagine going to see the Cirque du Soleil performing to electrified Wagner while wearing clown masks and hitting each other with pool noodles. Well, this is quite possibly weirder. And it’s beautiful.
Having this video on youtube has been like having unlimited access to an IV drug supply. I don’t know what the drug is, but need more. I’m like the rat which, instead of eating, keeps pressing the little lever to get another hit. Apparently, based on youtube views, I’m not the only one.