The Raving Octopus

[theravingoctopus]

Hello, hello, hellooooo.  It's been a while.

Before we begin, from what I understand there is no real mystery.  Foxes just kinda bark.

Anyway, do me a favour, and watch the above video.  Don't read on until you do.

Go ahead, I'll wait.

* * *

We open up on a typical Norwegian cocktail party, with...wait, was that person in a...and another...wait, what?

Right.  I truly have no idea where to go with this one.  Norwegian band Ylvis has put together this...uh...song for our listening pleasure.  After reading up a little about the band, I understand that they like to parody popular musical conventions, and knowing this there's really nothing to mock here because they're already doing it.

Except for the old bearded fellow traumatizing what is probably not really his grandson.  The kid looks cool for most of the parts he's in, being a brave little soldier, but when the old man starts to howl, you can tell that he probably peed a little.

The entire female wait staff of an Applebee's seems to have put on face masks to dance in this music video.  I'm surprised that I didn't see a single amused smile from the dancers though.

And the animated fox.  Just...just....argh. I don't know.  I just don't know.  

And the fact that the first seven or eight times I watched this video, I couldn't stop laughing in disbelief.

Really, all I can say here is FRAKA-KAKA-KAKA-KAKA-KOW!

Thanks, Norway.

[theravingoctopus]

Please ignore the expression of the gentleman in the paused video above.  It will become clear.

And so it comes to this.  As an intrepid Internet explorer (using, of course, Chrome or Firefox), there are times that I come across things that are best left unmentioned.  Then again, there are times that I make new discoveries and wonder just where the hell they've been hiding all my life.

Today, I have discovered a subgenre of music - a steam punk/hip hop fusion known as "chap hop".  This fellow above is Professor Elemental with his song "Cup of Brown Joy."

Thank you, Internet.  Bless you.

[theravingoctopus]

I say old chap, don't we just look fabulous?

[theravingoctopus]

Enemy fighters incoming!  Protect the mothership!

[jenclone]

the garden on a sunny dawn (by bgblogging)

Tonight I’m thinking that countdowns are inadequate when you’re talking about the threshold of a new life. Four days to summer? Four days to vacation? Four days to the farmers’ market, because you’re craving fresh organic strawberries? I can wrap my mind around that. What I can’t quite grasp is… four days until that long-empty spot beside you is filled by the person who was meant to be there. Life will continue, you’ll still be you, but nothing, really, will ever be the same.

[theravingoctopus]

I agree completely with your words (even the strawberries, which admittedly sound delicious) but there was a problem with the image you posted compared to the others.  So, being the industrious and helpful octopus that I am, I fixed it for you. You're welcome.

[theravingoctopus]

Okay, Denmark, I officially apologize.  Sure, I gave you a hard time earlier but that was because of The Cartoons and their evil, evil music video of Witchdoctor.  However, when I see things like this, I can't help but show my appreciation.

On the island of Fano (except it has one of those funny o's with a slash through it which I really can't be bothered figuring out which alt-code ascii thingamywhatsit it is) just off the coast of Jutland, we have the home of the International Kite Flying Festival.  Denmark gets awesome points for this.

Stole this one from their Facebook page, but couldn't figure out the link to the actual picture (because I barely use that evil place) but clicky here to go and look for yourself.

[theravingoctopus]

Ahh, childhood memories. Always so filled with a delightful amount of trauma and anguish, no?  A little history on this one: When I was in primary school (elementary school, for the Americans and their ilk), I was somehow convinced to join the choir.  This was, you know, despite the fact that I can't actually sing.  The most traumatic part of that was not that I had to sing when I really couldn't, but that choir practice clashed with computer studies (which in that day was the teacher loading up a room of MicroBee computers for us to play games on) and apparently one does not simply back out of choir.  There was an actual counselling session to keep me enthused about choir. Yes.

I'm digressing, as an octopus is allowed to do, but to continue, warm up for choir always started with twenty whole minutes of singing a "round" - think of the group being split into three and singing row row row your boat in parts so they overlap.  But we didn't get Row Row Row Your Boat.  No, we got "The Fast Food Song" which is actually musically based on an old folk song from Morocco called "A Ram Sam Sam" (which, despite the evidence displayed here, sounds better as a round) with questionable new lyrics (and arm gestures).  It was meant to connect to us kids.  Right.

This version, made in 2003 by a British group called the Fast Food Rockers, is even more horrifying, adding verses about how tasty it all is, and urging us all to eat to the beat.  It also features blinding costumes and for no real good reason a gentleman in a big blue (purple?) dog suit dancing along.

Words cannot express how wonderfully a terrible childhood memory matches up with this terrible, terrible version of the song - and the video.

Really wanting a salad,

-Bluey

[meyechael]

Tumblr Word Association

Instructions.  Reblog with the first word that comes into your head after looking at the most recent word posted.

Starting Word:  Umbrella

[thesassiestkitten-deactivated20]

Rain

[kamrabbit-deactivated20200424]

Turtles

[kindasavvy]

Chocolate

[id10t69-deactivated20120626]

ninjas

[jenclone]

tie-dye

[theravingoctopus]

I chose several words. Because I'm special like that.  They are "Goddamnit, Tumblr!"

[theravingoctopus]

Okay, so I love They Might Be Giants. Always have.  They have messed up lyrics AND messed up music videos.  This was one of the first songs of theirs I heard, many tides ago.

The lyrics, translated and summarized turn out to be something like: "You think I'm your friend, but I'm not.  I'm a little blue bird shaped nightlight (probably spelled with that disturbing kid-marketed butchering "Nitelite") that you think keeps you safe from harm. But you know, I'm just a night light in the end.  There's a picture in your room of a lighthouse.  Wish I could do that, man, but I'd mess it up.  Anyways, I'm not really your friend - just a light.  However, keep the memory of me inside you, to get you through the tough times.  I'm awesome like that.  Cool?"

The video...has absolutely nothing to do with that.  Of course.  We have two men (John and John, the duo who make up the band) jumping about holding invisible boxes.  We have one John welding in a miniature living room that is part of a larger room in which red and white checkered cyclists start circling.  We have the red and white checkered people turn into what I am going to call Eye-Zombies (because of their masks).  We have groups of different lightbulbs, which I suppose structures thematically with the song content. Only just.  One John plays with a light switch to look creepy. The checkered-shirt eye-zombies start to get a little rowdy, protest rock videos, dance-pursue a John and eventually look like they're eating invisible brains before joining a rather sedate mosh pit.  One John thinks a pipe helps him look more...something.  A large bone hits the floor, which probably symbolizes the death of rock music after its brain was consumed by eye-zombies. Or something. No idea. Really, really, no idea.

I'm sure there's actual symbolism in there, but where's the fun in that?

Delighted but bewildered,

Bluey.

[theravingoctopus]

In the interest of spreading weirdness and genuine "Oh, what the HELL is that?" moments, please watch in its entirety this 1998 music video from the Danish band Cartoons.  The song is Witchdoctor, which I heard in its "Chipmunks" version as a child and then several other versions since.

Features include Interesting Phallic Hair, Blatant Butt Grab, Spaceship That Totally Looks Like Cross Between Personal Hygiene Item and Personal Massage Device, and Random Elvis Appearance at the end.  It also contains what I think (and could be mistaken) is a Prince Charles lookalike cartoon who plays piano on his teeth for about two whole seconds, and a nice little sax riff.  I'm pretty sure the Hispanic looking Dane is also wearing big shoes that look like tanks, and one of the others has an interest in carrots.

This video is messed up on so many levels, and so must be shared to bring illumination to those that live in the darkest depths of the Internet Ocean.

Of course, one thing it doesn't feature is an octopus.  One would think that they could have considered it, what with the spaceship-phallus-tampon going underwater at one point before, um, entering a...a...hole...seriously, what the hell Denmark.

-Bluey

[theravingoctopus]

[theravingoctopus]

[theravingoctopus]

Zooming in a little on the bottom left corner.

[theravingoctopus]

Current progress on the card table.

[theravingoctopus]

Coraline the kitty.

[theravingoctopus]

The work continues ever onward.

[theravingoctopus]

Duck the Bard, my Dungeons and Dragons character.  I was invited to start playing (3.5 Edition) and designed this bard to be quirky and odd, crippled with social anxiety and a fear of frogs.  She gets nervous in social situations, and worries that the rest of the group will replace her with "someone better".  Has taken performance skills in both harp playing and comedy.  Wears no armour and doesn't like to fight - runs about in her Entertainers Outfit which is quite subtle and stealthy...er...maybe...