We’re back to Cool & Strange Music for April 5, 2016! Here is this week’s chart of the most out of this world musical wackiness and bizarreness! You have good timing! Today’s line up has a definite Rock N Roll groove to the tunes…. Imagine the Rock N Roll bands that would be playing with the ghosts at the Haunted Mansion in Disney.

First up is our favorite crossover (often on the Top 3 Indies video countdown too) act of the year! They are Oleg Gitaracula, Zombierella and Dr Boris, a Surf Rock trio from St. Petersburg Russia. They are hot! Here is their FB page, check it out: https://www.facebook.com/messerchups/

#3) Messer chups -Shandor Diabolikov https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q8Zvc0t2M4

Next up is some bizarreness I stumbled upon whilst searching for Cool & Strange tunes. This is very strange and has a fab video. Their name is Sloth Baby & the Land Pirates and they describe themselves as a “Psychedelic death science” band (what does THAT mean?) and they are from Morristown, New Jersey… I think. Here’s their FB page: https://www.facebook.com/SlothBabyLandPirates/?fref=ts

#2) Sloth Baby & the Land Pirates – Surf Gypsies https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElRxh8HypMo

NOW TIME FOR AN INTERLUDE! Well, after that Sloth Baby & the Land Pirates video, you should be ready for anything. Next up is a band who is legendary in Cool & Strange music circles, the Residents. This band is amazing. Here’s what Wikipedia says:

“The Residents are an American art collective best known for avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, Meet the Residents (1974), the group has released over sixty albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects, and ten DVDs. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, the Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, was started by the band. Throughout the group’s existence, the individual members have ostensibly attempted to operate under anonymity, preferring instead to have attention focused on their art output. Much outside speculation and rumor has focused on this aspect of the group. In public, the group appears silent and costumed, often wearing eyeball helmets, top hats and tuxedos—a long-lasting costume now recognized as its signature iconography. Its albums generally fall into two categories: deconstructions of Western popular music; and complex conceptual pieces, composed around a theme, theory or plot.”

Get that? The simple answer to who these folks are is much more convoluted. Here’s their FB page: https://www.facebook.com/TheOfficialResidents/?fref=ts

FREEBIE: The Residents – Yes/No https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhV3fkB2eUM

At #1 this week is a great band that does a fab cover of the Ramones’ “Judy is a Punk.” The band’s name is the New Piccadillys. The New Piccadillys are a four piece beat group from Glasgow, Scotland combining a 1960s sound with a 1970s punk rock. Twanging guitars and pounding drums provide the backing for their tight harmony beat versions of classics such as The Ramones’ Judy is a Punk and many other Rock ‘n’ Roll treasures from various eras all given The New Piccadillys infectiously fresh treatment. Here is their FB page: https://www.facebook.com/The-New-Piccadillys-144760422258122/?fref=ts

#1) The New Piccadillys – Judy is a Punk  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gl-HEUo-Js

Well that’s it for Cool & Strange Music for this week. Have a great week! – Mike in Tokyo Rogers