Remembering Laci

June 18, 2003 11:54 AM

Remembering Laci (sans taste)This link leads to a tribute song, in quicktime, to the late Laci Petersen. Sorry to bring things down to a tabloid-filter level, but the sheer hilarity of this song, as well as this leads me to wonder whether these were done (tastelessly) in earnest, or (tastelessly) in mockery.
posted by ghastlyfop (22 comments total)

oh. oh my. it's heartfelt, just ghastly.
posted by MaxVonCretin at 12:15 PM on June 18, 2003

Shine on, you Laci diamond...
posted by sharksandwich at 12:20 PM on June 18, 2003

Let's keep in mind, people -- this is California we're talking about. It's probably tastelessly earnest.
posted by krewson at 12:21 PM on June 18, 2003

Wow. That's just totally...wow.

It's earnest, all right...
posted by pizzasub at 12:23 PM on June 18, 2003

We knew one day she'd be gone, gone, gone.

Unbelievably bad.
posted by monkeyman at 12:26 PM on June 18, 2003

omg, the phrase "insult to injury" has never been better illustrated. This poor woman, not terrible enough she met a hideous and violent death in her prime, but she also faces the ignominy of immortality in that vast wasteland, the pantheon of pop-tabloid martyrs.

These are treading dangerously close to lil' markie in creep quotient.
posted by madamjujujive at 12:37 PM on June 18, 2003

Yeah, the idea that your tragic and violent death could lead to...this...is chilling.
posted by ghastlyfop at 12:41 PM on June 18, 2003

It was the claves at the beginning that brought me to tears.
posted by Witty at 12:47 PM on June 18, 2003

If Scott is found guilty, they should just sentence him to repeated listenings of these.
posted by sageleaf at 12:51 PM on June 18, 2003

Do princesses and angels really live on in Heaven?
posted by xmutex at 12:54 PM on June 18, 2003

I can't stop listening to it. Is there someone I can call?
posted by Witty at 1:01 PM on June 18, 2003

Let's keep in mind, people -- this is California we're talking about. It's probably tastelessly earnest.

As a) a Californian, and b) one living close enough to Molesto for this to be "local news", I find it simply tasteless. I find this tasteless even for the midwest (where it might -possibly- be earnest).

Studio karaoke is outlawed here and pay-for-play artists are regularly hunted down and hung in the streets here.
posted by Ogre Lawless at 1:18 PM on June 18, 2003

Is this more or less evil than casting the made-for-tv movie?
posted by creamed corn at 1:22 PM on June 18, 2003

Oh it's tastelessly in earnest for sure. No one would mock Laci's death in such a way. Of course lots of people would mock such a tasteless, maudlin memorial to Laci's death - it's fair game.

My question is, was this done by anyone who actually knew Laci? My suspicion is that it wasn't, and that it's basically done by strangers for the perusal of strangers. Of course it's awful that Laci died in such a way - but why this rush to wallow in schmaltzy memorials over a stranger?
posted by orange swan at 1:29 PM on June 18, 2003

Man, I heard the first one and couldn't believe how bad it was.. then there was a second one linked here ("We Remember Laci"), and then, in the little select box at the bottom, I found an equally horrendous third one...

Do people really hear these and go "oh that's so touching..."?

I sure as hell hope not.
posted by twiggy at 1:56 PM on June 18, 2003

Good god.

I've always considered the empowerment of the individual creative impulse facilitated by advancing technology to be a good thing. Let The People make their own art, democratize the creative sphere, and all that.

Maybe I've been wrong. That song in that second link ("We Remember Lacy") is like a nightmare vision of Leonard Cohen.

And xmutex: it's not "princesses and angels"; it's "princess angels". As in those angels who are princesses. Or maybe those princesses who are angels. I have no idea. My god.
posted by mr_roboto at 2:02 PM on June 18, 2003

Now the angels hold her gently
And little Connor's with her too...

This has truly raised the bar of awfulness. Christ in a bucket.

If I were a member of her family, I think I'd livid. But maybe they find it touching. God only knows.
posted by jokeefe at 2:26 PM on June 18, 2003

mr_roboto: nice to know I'm not the only person who thought of Leonard Cohen.

My first impression is that it seems like the first track has more Awkward Mourning cred than the others -- the vocals are untrained enough that I get the impression this is someone who actually knew her. The other two, especially the Dopplecohen, sound more commissioned. (Note that #2 on the list, Laci's Song, is sung by a Casey Paterson. Name is a coincidence?)

Oooh! Source! Here's an article in the Fresno Bee that talks about two of the songs.

Looks like they're both unrelated shmoes who shouldn't be allowed near musical equipment, especially when you consider this:

"Both men previously wrote musical tributes about other tragic events."

And, according to this one, the one sung by Casey Paterson was written by Laci's FedEx delivery guy.
posted by cortex at 3:58 PM on June 18, 2003

They seemed earnest enough, just completely lacking ability.

I see where the suspicions come from though, as they are so bad that one might assume that it was purposefully awful.
posted by Ynoxas at 8:44 PM on June 18, 2003

And, according to this one, the one sung by Casey Paterson was written by Laci's FedEx delivery guy.

Okay, all the most reason to just sign the thing that lets them leave packages in the mail slot. Worst tribute song, ever. I'd rather listen to 'Goodbye England's Rose" 100 times a day with the treble tweaked high than ever hear a note of any of the Laci songs again.
posted by Dreama at 6:49 AM on June 19, 2003

the one sung by Casey Paterson was written by Laci's FedEx delivery guy.

flash forward to 2047, when police investigators put a deathbed confession together with seemingly unrelated clues and discover that the killer was really the fedex delivery guy.

now that's creepy....
posted by grabbingsand at 7:16 AM on June 19, 2003

Shit. Someone listen to that recording backwards, and quick!
posted by cortex at 4:16 PM on June 19, 2003