A Crimpella — VoicePlay music video
This is one of the more odd and creative things VoicePlay concocted early on. They turned a collection of phonations, sound effects, nonsense words, and foreign language lyrics from two dozen songs into a delightfully goofy performance art piece. You will almost certainly recognize some of the samples. The set-up is a little drawn-out for my taste, but once the beat kicks in, it's off to the races.
Details:
title: A Crimpella
original songs / performers: [2:20] "Walk the Dinosaur" by Was (Not Was); [2:28] "Witch Doctor" by Alvin & the Chipmunks; [2:35] "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; [2:40] "We Go Together" from Grease!; [2:47] “Motownphilly” by Boyz II Men; [2:55] "Imma Be" by the Black Eyed Peas; [3:03] "Tutti Frutti" by Little Richard; [3:05] "Shoop" by Salt N Pepa; [3:12] "Jock-A-Mo" (aka "Iko Iko") by James "Sugar Boy" Crawford; [3:20] "Mahna Mahna" from The Muppet Show; [3:30] "Lovin, Touchin, Squeezin" by Journey; [3:54] "Goofy Goober Rock" from The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie; [3:57] "MMMBop" by Hanson; [4:10] "Hooked on a Feeling" by Blue Swede; [4:14] "Bawitdaba" by Kid Rock; [4:19] "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" by Neil Sedaka; [4:29] "Can't Get You Outta My Head" by Kylie Minogue; [4:32] "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen; [4:45] "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga; [4:51] "Limbo La La" by James Lloyd; [5:01] "All Night Long" by Lionel Richie; [5:18] "Wanna Be Starting Something" by Michael Jackson; [5:24] "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam
arranged by: VoicePlay
release date: 1 September 2012
My favorite bits:
the thump at 2:30 propelling Eli into the air
everyone "watching" the UFO fly by
their most concerted effort at choreography being to "Shoop"
all the tentative poking and grimacing as they try to figure out how to "fix" their necks
Tony rocking out solo while the other guys consider whether to join in
the string of silly noises starting at 4:08
Layne's lowkey Little Monster claws during the Lady Gaga section
Trivia:
○ The boys gnaw on five CD cases at the beginning, but only Earl's album contains a song included in the ensuing medley:
Earl — Cooleyhighharmony by Boyz II Men (1991)
Tony — The Doors' greatest hits (1996 re-release)
Eli — Pump by Aerosmith (1989)
Geoff — Toxic Audio's eponymous debut album (1999)
Layne — Contra by Vampire Weekend (2010)
○ Several of the songs referenced here have appeared in VoicePlay's later medleys or short videos:
The bell tone section from Motownphilly was also included in their Boy Bands in 5 Minutes medley.
Different sections of Bohemian Rhapsody were part of their Queen in 5 Minutes medley.
Hooked on a Feeling and Mahna Mahna have both been featured in recent short-form videos.
○ This piece was included in their setlist for the 2014 Sing-Off tour.
○ This medley was inspired by British comedy troupe The Mighty Boosh. TMB had a series of sketches containing absurdist songs / performance art pieces they called "crimping". (Fair warning, most of their "crimps" feature adult language and gestures.)