I Can't Go For That
March 30, 2012 2:28 PM   Subscribe

Hundreds of musicians criss-cross the country daily on their way to the next gig. How do they deal with the boredom? This way
posted by kenaldo (65 comments total) 37 users marked this as a favorite
 
Before 2:03 -- 7.5/10
Immediately after 2:03 -- 9.6/10
posted by penduluum at 2:32 PM on March 30, 2012 [10 favorites]


I would like to be in that car.
posted by bicyclefish at 2:33 PM on March 30, 2012 [4 favorites]


I was halfway expecting this to happen...
posted by schmod at 2:36 PM on March 30, 2012 [1 favorite]


It took me a while to realise it was a van and the singer/kazoo player isn't driving.
posted by onya at 2:36 PM on March 30, 2012 [2 favorites]


Any chance we have to be creative, and to commune with others, is just magical.
posted by KokuRyu at 2:40 PM on March 30, 2012 [5 favorites]


I like this conceit a lot. I played the video for a class of mine, they did not seem as into it.
posted by OmieWise at 2:43 PM on March 30, 2012


Saw Wil Wheaton tumbl this one yesterday and it's my fave. Good mix of sounding good and being fun and cute.
posted by thecjm at 2:43 PM on March 30, 2012


The guitar player is driving.
posted by phaedon at 2:44 PM on March 30, 2012 [3 favorites]


Into the Woods has shot a few groups doing this concept (although the bands are all from portland. For whatever that's worth.)
posted by justalisteningman at 2:45 PM on March 30, 2012 [2 favorites]


Neat! I was hoping for the Magnetic Fields' newest road song though. Hookers and Blow.
Eeeeeeeeee seeing them in a few hours!!!
posted by yellowbinder at 2:45 PM on March 30, 2012 [2 favorites]


I like's it.
posted by unSane at 2:46 PM on March 30, 2012 [1 favorite]


DON'TPOSTROPHE
posted by Edison Carter at 2:47 PM on March 30, 2012 [1 favorite]


It's a pretty smart page from the Facebook playbook - monetize every moment of your day.
posted by four panels at 2:49 PM on March 30, 2012


The burly keyboard player is trying hard not to crack up laughing once that kazoo solo shows up.
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 2:49 PM on March 30, 2012


Awesome! They even got that tricky timing on the "no can do's" right!
posted by Clustercuss at 2:50 PM on March 30, 2012


Just brilliant.
AND It succeeds as a cover that convinces you it has a reason to exist.
I would pay cash money for an EP of these.
posted by Senor Cardgage at 2:50 PM on March 30, 2012


My pal's band did this for one of their songs: Does This Mean You're Moving On?
posted by carsonb at 2:52 PM on March 30, 2012


Meh...saw that a few days ago, and yes it is fun, as are all their versions of stuff, but this kills more, just for the look on Booker's face when he takes his solo.

Now if you want to discuss off the the cuff covers that will kill your mama, and dog, and your application to grad school?
posted by timsteil at 2:55 PM on March 30, 2012 [8 favorites]


They had me on the backing vocals so when the 2:03 moment happened there was nowhere else for my joy to go and I died.

Also, look at the sidebar for some other amazing covers, including this one.
posted by Joey Michaels at 2:55 PM on March 30, 2012


When I saw "How do they deal with the boredom?" I thought for sure it would just be a video of a band watching Spinal Tap.
posted by Slack-a-gogo at 2:58 PM on March 30, 2012


Oh, and their "Everyday" by Buddy Holly cover is also a lovely little gem.
posted by Joey Michaels at 2:59 PM on March 30, 2012 [2 favorites]


You totally oatsrolled us!
posted by me3dia at 2:59 PM on March 30, 2012 [4 favorites]


Funkadelic cover is good too
posted by kenaldo at 3:02 PM on March 30, 2012


I can go for that.
posted by Greg_Ace at 3:06 PM on March 30, 2012 [2 favorites]


You can just hear the downloads rolling in. I looove this. And yes, she's driving the van.
posted by New Old User at 3:07 PM on March 30, 2012 [1 favorite]


Mmmm. Rolled oats.
posted by penduluum at 3:07 PM on March 30, 2012 [1 favorite]


That was pretty great, actually.

And damn, that looks like fun.
posted by Lutoslawski at 3:13 PM on March 30, 2012 [1 favorite]


I know I'm getting old, but what? Nobody knows how to tell crass jokes and tasteless stories about your drinking days anymore?
posted by sneebler at 3:16 PM on March 30, 2012


Yup, that's a band, alright.
posted by blue t-shirt at 3:21 PM on March 30, 2012


That was fantastic! Who the heck was it though?
posted by KeSetAffinityThread at 3:34 PM on March 30, 2012


I kept trying to catch a view of the driver in her reflective glasses.
posted by Obscure Reference at 3:41 PM on March 30, 2012


I know I'm getting old, but what? Nobody knows how to tell crass jokes and tasteless stories about your drinking days anymore?


Does god hate you or something? Has he not taught you how to love?
posted by rhythm and booze at 3:44 PM on March 30, 2012


That isn't tour bus music. This is tour bus music.
posted by koeselitz at 3:47 PM on March 30, 2012


Does god hate you or something? Has he not taught you how to love?

Ah shit, that completely broken link was supposed to be a link to this.
posted by rhythm and booze at 3:48 PM on March 30, 2012


The bad news is they forgot the bass player at the last gas station and no one has noticed yet...
posted by lothar at 3:56 PM on March 30, 2012


Damn, that was good. I liked it better than the original, which was ubiquitous back in the day. This has more spirit.
posted by Seekerofsplendor at 3:57 PM on March 30, 2012


It looks like this band has spent quite a bit of time recording in the car.
posted by KeSetAffinityThread at 4:03 PM on March 30, 2012


This is cool. For what it's worth, my band used to buy $1 clearance compilation cds from unknown indie labels and then play "Points!" which is a game where anyone can give any number of positive or negative points to a song for any reason (e.g., awesome drum sound +1, intro too long -2, name of band/song is awesome/sucks, or anything else including highly abstracted criteria). If a song lost too many points it would get skipped and for each disc we would declare a winning song. This was really fun.
posted by snofoam at 4:05 PM on March 30, 2012 [4 favorites]


We would also always play the same song whenever we were driving away from a gig or a city. One tour it was "Sister Christian" until somehow we decided that the song "Secret of my Success" was actually better and more inspirational.
posted by snofoam at 4:07 PM on March 30, 2012


LET ME SEE YOUR EYES, DAMNIT!
posted by pyrex at 4:21 PM on March 30, 2012


's nice. Meshuggah's "New Millenium Cyanide Christ" is still the best music video shot in a van*, though.

*If by "van" you mean "tour bus". And it's not live. But still! It's probably the best music video in the history of music videos!
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:26 PM on March 30, 2012


Now I see that koeselitz beat me to linking to Meshuggah. BUT STILL
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:28 PM on March 30, 2012




Oh, no... is kazoo going to be the new ukelele?
posted by MrVisible at 4:42 PM on March 30, 2012


Their whole posted playlist is pretty rowdy
posted by Golem XIV at 4:43 PM on March 30, 2012


I was just expecting a van full of people playing Draw Something.
posted by kittens for breakfast at 4:46 PM on March 30, 2012


They've actually got a whole channel, Van Sessions, where they have over a dozen covers made this way.
posted by Miko at 5:50 PM on March 30, 2012 [1 favorite]


As an indication of how much I like this (and their other covers) I got twitchy when I noticed that these talented persons are NOT WEARING THEIR SEATBELTS. Please continue being awesome while exercising due caution.
Thank you,
internet worrywort.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 7:05 PM on March 30, 2012 [2 favorites]


The driver's seatbelt is clearly on. The others have claimed they are. The gents in back have lap belts.
posted by kenaldo at 7:10 PM on March 30, 2012


In the "How Will I Know" cover, I could only discern the driver/chanteuse wearing hers.

As I was writing the previous comment, I had the premonition that youtube comments or elsewhere would have made the same nonsense point, so I'd be glad to stand corrected.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 7:18 PM on March 30, 2012


Yes, someone else I showed these to started obsessing about the safety. It's not illegal everywhere not to wear your seatbelt, no matter how sensible it may be. And I don't think we have enough to assume they aren't. Someone else went so far as to suggest it wasn't safe to harmonize while driving; all I can say to that is, with the amount of behind-the-wheel singing, songwriting, and harmonizing I do, I guess I'm lucky.
posted by Miko at 7:22 PM on March 30, 2012


but, there are some of the videos where she isn't even in her seat.
posted by kenaldo at 7:23 PM on March 30, 2012


I did not know that Nikki Haley's daughter was in a band.
posted by Meatbomb at 7:36 PM on March 30, 2012


We used to roll in a '74 Econoline fitted out with a folding couch. That thing could have mangled us had we so much as made a hard stop. The best band van I ever had was a former utility company van, with a steel cage welded to the frame to form an equipment area. We tried to emulate that kind of security in the Econoline, with a web of nylon rope that we rigged up, but I never believed in it....I still think it's a miracle I was never crushed by a Fender Twin.
posted by thelonius at 7:53 PM on March 30, 2012 [2 favorites]


I spent my entire childhood either standing up and wiggling about in the front bench seat of a station wagon or lolling around in the way-back. One of my good friends' parents couldn't afford a baby car seat (they were rare) so as a baby, she rode in a cardboard box.

I know we are super safer and a lot more precious these days. IT's still not going to make me fret fret fret so much about this band that I forget to listen to their music.
posted by Miko at 8:33 PM on March 30, 2012


rhythm and booze, I thought your point with that link the first time was to make my browser say:
"Oops! Google Chrome could not find what is wrong with you

Suggestions:
Search on Google:"
which just seemed like it cut too deep.

I'm surprised nobody's yet posted the video of Girlyman dancing to Steve Winwood's "Higher Love". Winwood himself has shared it with fans.
posted by knile at 4:46 AM on March 31, 2012


Why does it sound so good? There's road noise a bit, but the mix is just grand. Are there mics on each person? How'd they do it?

Anyway, I give it a 98. It's got a good beat and i can drive to it.
posted by cccorlew at 8:27 AM on March 31, 2012


cccorlew; apparently just an iPhone. And some talent.
posted by nonlocal at 10:06 AM on March 31, 2012


I was going to make a snarky comment about how hard can it be to pass the time on a road trip, but then I listened to/watched the link, and now that just feels unimportant. Also: I tell people that I play kazoo, but I obviously need to put a lot more work in on my kazooing skills!
posted by eviemath at 11:28 AM on March 31, 2012


Also, I want her sunglasses. Those are pretty cool.
posted by eviemath at 11:28 AM on March 31, 2012


Also also: this gives me the idea that I should work on learning to play my one-string cigar box guitar on my road trip this summer.
posted by eviemath at 11:29 AM on March 31, 2012


Oh wtf with the awesome of this!? +1 Will crBuy Again!
posted by Jeremy at 1:51 PM on March 31, 2012


I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone rock a kazoo that hard.
posted by AMSBoethius at 9:13 PM on March 31, 2012


And here I am coming from another thread where Beau Lewis says hipsters are cynical curators (not creators). And that he's one of them.

I don't know how Beau Lewis would label these guys, but I'd call them romantics.
posted by scelerat at 11:46 AM on April 1, 2012 [1 favorite]


Great find. Certainly much better than my friends' roadtrip singalongs.
posted by a halcyon day at 9:03 PM on April 1, 2012


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