Add to iTunes | Add to YouTube | Add to Google | RSS Feed

I have been a fan of Weird Al Yankovic for many years now. The level of respect I have for the man ratcheted up several notches when I read his latest blog post. The story details his journey to create the first single on his upcoming new album, which is a parody of Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way.” This song nearly didn’t make the album, though, due to Ms. Gaga’s disapproval.

Al has long held the belief that he should obtain permission from an artist before releasing a parody based on his work. Legally, he doesn’t have to do this. Morally, he feels it is his duty. Most singers are more than happy to allow the material. After all, it’s more press for them and perhaps even more sales. They all recognize King Yankovic isn’t trying to hurt them in any way. Parodies are fun, after all. His lyrics take a tongue-in-cheek poke at the lyrics of the other tune.

As per his usual way of doing things, his manager contacted Gaga’s handler, requesting permission to use his take on her song as the first single off the new record. The answer was a tad surprising: she wanted to “hear it” prior to agreeing. Thinking this a bit odd (usually people agree after reading the pitch), he agreed to write. Even though he was smack in the middle of his Australian tour, he busted his rump getting the wording just right. The finished song was sent to hers truly in order to read over.

Al sat on pins and needles for several days, praying for the green light. This last bit was all that the recording and release of his new album was waiting on. Sadly, the answer which came back was even more strange than the first: “She actually needs to hear it. Otherwise the answer is no.” Apparently, reading each and every lyric isn’t quite good enough.

The king of parodies locked himself in a studio, cutting short his family vacation. He again pushed himself beyond every limit in order to complete the work. He believed in this song THAT much. He knew in his heart it wouldn’t offend anyone, even though the “Born This Way” original takes a look at serious human rights issues. He even planned to donate all the money from sales of the song and music video to the Human Rights Campaign. That news, coupled with the finished single, made him sure he would get the approval he so craved.

It wasn’t meant to be. Ms. You-Know-Who decided for some reason she didn’t like it, and refused to agree. After all of his hard work – and pretty much being jerked around – Al was quite frustrated. He decided to release the song on YouTube and his own blog instead of including it on the album. This way, his hard work wasn’t for “nothing” and he is still holding to his standard of getting an artist’s approval prior to releasing on an album.

Interestingly enough, the blog post and video garnered enough positive attention that Ms. Yoo-Hoo has changed her tune. The song has been given her blessing, and will be the first single off of the upcoming “ALPOCALYPSE” album. Look for it in stores on June 21st.

Well played, sir Yankovic, well played.

Weird Al vs Lady Gaga: The Saga

Add to iTunes | Add to YouTube | Add to Google | RSS Feed

Unboxing videos – we’ve all seen them, but you’ve never seen an unboxing video quite like this. This is bigger than the iPhone 4 unboxing. It’s more moving than unboxing the MacBook Air. This unboxing video could be the last unboxing you ever watch. And as if one unboxing wasn’t enough, you get 2 for the price of 1 in this extended look inside the world of unboxing videos.

I’ve been waiting for some amount of time for this particular product. I can’t even remember back to when I began the countdown. True to form, I had my unboxing juice by my side. I was happy to note that the box is of perfect shape and has no obvious damage on any side.

I like that the barcodes on this beautiful white box are very tightly packed. I wouldn’t be too thrown off by this. Normally, they’re written in a vertical orientation. This set is nothing short of that. I do see, however, that the stamp on the label is slightly malformed. I don’t know if that means this box has been damaged in some unknown capacity. I guess we shall find out any moment now.

Unlike real men, I use scissors to cut open my boxes. Make sure you never run with them in your hand. You can injure – or seriously kill – yourself. This is the reason why many unboxing videos are cut in half. The person recording just doesn’t listen to his mother and runs around the house with the scissors in his hand at the end.

This particular cardboard happens to be of the corrugated variety. This makes my box nice and sturdy yet still easy to cut through with my scissors. This is my favorite type of cardboard out there. It’s not too thick and not too thin, and it has ridges!

Much like mini-pads, this box has wings. I don’t know if this is something you are looking for, but I certainly appreciate it. If you’re looking for the wings, this type of box will work perfectly. It will make you doubly happy! It has a bonus set of wings hidden inside!!

Inside, you’ll see we have a very nice and uniform tan color. This is something I found rather nice about this box. The brown is a very nice contrast against the white on the outside and on the sides themselves. It’s perfect to carry around after Labor Day when ladies aren’t supposed to be seen in white.

The craftsmanship that went into this box is just fantastic. There are some type of raised letters or numbers imprinted on the bottom. It’s not Braille, but it’s kind of cool to pretend that it is!

This is totally the best unboxing I’ve ever done. I don’t think this box could get any better. I haven’t gotten any paper cuts. This speaks to how well the box was made. There’s no word on what the next version of this box will be like, but I’ll be sure to let you know as soon as I have my hands on one.

Don’t forget – this box is actually something you can recycle.

This is likely the last unboxing video I will ever record. They simply aren’t interesting, yo. If you’re someone who goes around watching this type of video, then STOP IT!

You are welcome.

The Best Unboxing Video Ever

Jeff and Maya Bohnhoff are creating some of the best parodies I’ve heard lately. This one is a take on Bohemian Rhapsody – Star Wars style!

You’ll find eighteen tracks on their CD, including titles such as DNA, Landing Party, Our Meds are Cheaper and I Am the Walmart. The titles alone are enough to make me grab my credit card… dude, I have to listen to these! As a long-time Weird Al fan, you know I’m going to love this stuff.

The question of the day is: Does the Light side matter to you?

Star Wars Parody Song – Midichlorian Rhapsody

The people at Hoggworks make puppets, create high-quality online shows, and do a whole lot of other great stuff. Brian Hogg is the brains behind this outfit, and I’m not sure that everything is where it should be in his cranium. I mean that in a VERY good way, though. This stuff is hilarious, and nothing short of genius.

My favorite has to be the Mossberg puppet. This little guy is a parody of Wall Street Journalist Walt Mossberg.

In this video, Walt talks of how Opera embarked on the insane crusade of trying to get an Opera browser on the iPhone. He admits he’s really tired – but NOT drunk! He claims that this makes as much sense as Dom DeLuise saying he was Vegan.

In Walt’s eyes, Hell has frozen over since Apple actually approved this app. I think he starts off on a rant about Steve Jobs being his close, personal friend and making all of the rules of life. I was laughing so hard by this point that I couldn’t quite make out all of the words.

I think I’ll stop writing now. Watch the video for yourself. Nothing I say is going to make it any better than it already is.

Puppet Reviews Opera Mini for the iPhone

Justin Beiber is a teen sensation who was originally discovered on YouTube by R&B artist Usher. His story is much like a fairytale – the stuff dreams are made of. Young girls all over the world fight over who is going to marry the poor young kid. Guys his age wish they were him, even if they won’t admit it.

The masterminds behind Barely Digital regularly produce videos that are dedicated to making fun of things in the tech and gaming world, and pretty much anything else online that they can find to chuckle at. Their latest effort – a parody of Justin Bieber’s hit “Baby” – had me laughing for several minutes straight.

Gotta love that Bieber kid. His music may not be my cup of proverbial tea, but you can’t fault him for his success. He’s worked hard, and has seen it pay off in more ways than he can count.

Who is Justin Bieber?

Perhaps by fate, an unknown actor by the name of Chris Pirillo was today selected by director Oliver Stone to play the role of Chris Pirillo, the deeply troubled, famed technology connoisseur.

Stone’s choice of Pirillo for Pirillo was largely due to Pirillo’s utter lack of experience in film. Certainly, Pirillo has watched a few flicks in his day, but we believe this is nothing more than a marketing tactic done to scare more movie money out of the pockets of honest people.

No stranger to controversy, Stone believes that only Pirillo could match Pirillo’s disturbed wit for this motion picture. Principal photography for “The Geeks” is set to begin before month’s end, with Tarquin Fim-bim Lim-bim Whim-bim Bus Stop Ftang-ftang Ole Biscuit Barrel allegedly taking on the envied position of head gaffer.

Pirillo has studied Pirillo, and knows him intimately – from the way he would ignore his chat room throughout the day, to the way he would often scream obscenities when nearby PCs would decide to randomly connect and disconnect USB devices. Pirillo lead geeks the world over to live a life of digital hermitage, having ultimately driven himself to the great kernel panic in the sky after attempting a record-breaking five minute fart.

This will undoubtedly be Oliver Stone’s most controversial film yet.

The grave of Pirillo remains undisclosed, but the live video camera pointed inside has given humanity a glimpse of decomposition… 24 hours a day, 7 days a week… at dead.pirillo.com.

The Geeks: An Oliver Stone Film

Add to iTunes | Add to YouTube | Add to Google | RSS Feed

Every year, I enjoy making a tech-themed parody out of a Christmas song. This year is no exception. Welcome to “Blue Vista”.

We were talking about Christmas and Vista both in the chat room today. Someone laughed and mentioned “Blue Vista Christmas” and inspiration struck. I took a few minutes, jotted down some lyrics, and a parody was born. I recorded my efforts a capella, and uploaded them… along with the music only version of Blue Christmas. Some of our chat members then took both of them and mixed them together. The result is the song you hear in the video.

My invitation to all of you is to download the .mp3 yourself. Play with it… make it a video, add pictures, whatever! Just be sure to give credit where credit is due. If there is a really excellent video made, I’ll likely add it to my own YouTube account. Be sure and send me a link to what you’ve done with the .mp3. I’d love to see it! Without further ado… the lyrics:

I’ve had a blue desktop with Vista.
I’ve been so blue. XP, I’ve missed ya.
Dialogs popping up thanks to UAC.
Just ain’t the same, dear. At least it’s not ME.

And with those blue wallpapers with white text
I can… wait a minute… that’s not a wallpaper.
What the hell’s a STOP ERROR. IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL?

And I had a blue, blue blue blue screen.

Oh, Windows Vista… why ya gotta do this to me?
Cancel or allow? Of course I want you to allow.
If I didn’t want you to allow, I wouldn’t have done it in the first
place.
Step on my blue suede shoes if you wanna, I don’t care.
Just get better, please. Please?!

You’ll be doin’ all right, with your Leopard in sight,
But I’ll have a blue, blue Vista.

Again, that link to download is HERE.

Want to embed this video on your own site, blog, or forum? Use this code or download the video:

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lP0P0I0H4nU"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lP0P0I0H4nU" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

Christmas Music Parody – Blue Vista

Yes, I get it – this video is a parody.

I think Tuesday Night Tech has been trying to get my attention, and they’ve succeeded. Seems that their sense of humor is right up my alley, whether they’ve been slagging on me or not. I’ve had virtually no time to digest my podcast subscriptions, let alone listen / watch new ones.

I’ve been looking into FeedDemon alternatives for OS X – and I’m not finding many of ‘em. Tried Google Reader and it totally choked on me (sorry, Scoble). Vienna looks promising. Trying a new newsreader is like trying on a new pair of pants.

Hey, at least I don’t go around wearing NES consoles on my head:

LEAVE ME ALONE…?

From What We Call the News…

There was a time not long ago
when each and every day
at six o’clock each evening
you knew news was on its way
from anchors of integrity…

It’s all downhill from there.

Then along came cable
and the ratings race ensued
Great legends found themselves replaced with…

It gets really, REALLY silly around 1:24. Extremely silly:

Yeah, it’s yours truly (along with two friends, Robert Scoble and Mike Arrington of TechCrunch). It’s an honor, all around. My life is now complete.

Watch the full video here:

JibJab Coupons:

• JibJab - 10% off 12-month JibJab.com Subscription using coupon code JIBJAB10 (Posted on 12/10/10 and Expires on 12/31/15)
• JibJab - Risk Free 30 Day Trial (Posted on 7/17/10 and Expires on 12/31/15)

Find Coupons for over 1200 Stores

I’m in a JibJab Cartoon!!!

I can’t think of the last time I set any site as my default “start page” (other than my own, or a local document of collected links and search fields). I was checking referral logs for bLaugh and noticed that Protopage and Netvibes kept popping up. I had visited each of them a while ago, but never really bothered to return to either – portal sites aren’t really my thing.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that our daily comic was toggled as a default widget on the primary Protopage tab! So, not only is Protopage the best designed AJAX portal, but it also has the best sense of humor. Okay, so maybe I’m a bit biased with the second claim – but it’s still incredibly thrilling to see just how many people have picked up on bLaugh since its launch a few months ago. Technorati reports that we’ve moved up to 831 (3,919 links from 1,353 blogs), though Hugh has been around substantially longer and has a insanely better numbers (and rightfully so).

Comic impressions are different than text impressions and/or video plays – just like most Web images (read: banners) have always been better played for branding purposes. For instance, there’s virtually no way of telling how many people read bLaugh on a daily basis through mass aggregation services like Protopage, Google Reader, Bloglines, etc. I can tell you one thing: I certainly welcome the use of our feed and/or API by any third-party. Brad and I have already been profitable with our madcapped adventure – without having to resort to venture comical capital. GoDaddy seems equally as happy! Move over, United Feature Syndicate and King Features Syndicate!

My Favorite Portal: Protopage

When we released the bLaugh API, I was hoping that some enterprising developer would use it to create something fun. Mike from Singer’s Creations just unleashed Comicazzi tonight. Essentially, it’s a desktop app that will let you drag and drop bLaugh comics onto your current wallpaper. If that doesn’t sound very exciting to you, I’ve suggested that the interactive comic viewer eventually include other Web comics – hence, the generic “Comicazzi” title. If you would like your comic to be included in the app, you’ll have to talk to Mike about it (and give him an easy way to access the images). I’ve also suggested that Comicazzi eventually call on the Flickr API to help people build dynamic wallpapers from Flickr iamges, too. Fun times! Download it!

Comic Freeware

Who does this remind you of?

Okay, so… Brad and I released this comic on bLaugh today:

Should be chuckle-worthy, though it wasn’t the original strip. I showed another image to friends, with some of them suggesting that we hold it indefinitely – and others suggesting that we run it immediately. If you’re offended easily, you don’t want to see this: the comic we chose not to run.

Did we make the right decision in not running the original version? It’s culturally offensive (playing on stereotypes), but so are countless political cartoons these days. I personally think we did the right thing by going with the ski-masks. Last thing I’d ever want to do is incite an interracial (or international) incident.

Is This Offensive or Funny?

For some reason or another, choosy users choose bLaugh. At least, that’s what the readers and staff of BusinessWeek Online report. We just received a “Best of the Web” award in the Humor category. I’d still like to see bLaugh pushed out and shared on more Web sites, portals, and print media. Who else won?

• The Onion
• The Joy of Tech
• Rocketboom
• gapingvoid
• Go Fug Yourself* (tied)
• Ze Frank* (tied)

I suppose this means they want us to do a parody of their brand. “BusinessWeak” sounds kinda funny, especially if we do a mock cover? Until then, I guess today’s bLaugh will have to do…

bLaugh is a Reader’s Choice

I’m not a professional music critic – and don’t pretend to be. However, I’ve gotta tell you that “Straight Outta Lynwood” [SOL] is one of the best albums that “Weird Al” Yankovic has produced to date. Yes, I’m biased – having been a fan of the band ever since the seventh grade. His originals finally, in many ways, outshine his parodies. SOL nails the melodies and harmonies, as expected.

SOL is a bargain at $15: “DualDisc includes PCM Stereo, 5.1 Surround and instrumental mixes of the entire album (with on-screen lyrics option), plus a 9-minute behind-the-scenes documentary and 6 brand new music videos.” I bet you wish your favorite artists did this, too. If there’s anything that’s going to keep physical media alive, it’s jam-packing titles with every bonus imaginable. A few weeks ago, Al unleashed the half-sactioned “You’re Pitiful” online. It isn’t included on the album, though the original artist gave Al permission to do so:

Yankovic recorded the song to be included on his Straight Outta Lynwood album after, according to Yankovic, having been given the James Blunt’s blessing to parody the song. However, following its recording, the artist’s record company, Atlantic Records, allegedly told Yankovic that he could not include the song.

Even after having publicly stated that the band doesn’t make much money from digital purchases (through iTunes or otherwise), Yankovic still treats his fans fairly – he knows that we’ll all buy whatever he creates. In fact, I’ve been known to buy his albums for friends – just because I think that as a serious and smart musician, “Weird Al” is underrated. His musical genius is fully exercised in a few SOL tracks – which won’t leave you SOL.

1. White and Nerdy: Computer geeks should love these lyrics twice as much as they did “It’s All About the Pentiums” – with references to Wikipedia and MySpace included. Even if you don’t like “rap,” you’re going to love these lyrics. And honestly, which one of us isn’t white and nerdy?! I think I have a new personal theme song. Great way to start the album. Even Ponzi LOL’ed a few times when she first heard it. Five stars.
2. Pancreas: Out of all the songs on SOL, this one is probably my favorite. It begins a capella, flowing and weaving in a classic “Beach Boys” sound. I’m not sure I’d consider this a complete style parody, though I wouldn’t have been surprised to hear something similar on a TMBG album – which is probably why I love this track so much. If you don’t find yourself strangely attracted to the final refrains, there’s something seriously wrong with you. “Insulin, Glucagon, Coming from the islets of Langerhans.” I can’t get it out of my head. Er, pancreas – if you will. Five stars.
3. Canadian Idiot: For the second parody on SOL, we have a parody of Green Day’s “American Idiot.” Much like in “Lasagna” and “Pretty Fly for a Rabbi,” Al is finding gold in stereotypes. It’s a fun song, though I must admit that I find myself enjoying the R&B parodies more than punk/rock music these days. Still, I’m not anxious to skip to the next track – if only because the original song is catchy to begin with. If you don’t know anything about Canadian culture, you probably won’t be impressed by this tune (but I bet your Canadian friends will be). Four stars.
4. I’ll Sue Ya: Speaking to the trend of crazy lawsuits appearing in the headlines every other week, Al gives us a “Kid Rock” style emulation – littered with popular brand names and outlandish experiences with them. I’ve never been attracted to “angsty” music, but this beat is to my liking (far more than an earlier “Young, Dumb, and Ugly”). If there’s a low point on the album, I’d say this is it – unless you happen to be a fan of the genre. Despite my indifference, I don’t consider it to be a “skip track.” I wholly expect these lyrics to show up in a future email joke thread – and please don’t take that as a suggestion. Three stars.
5. Polkarama!: I look forward to the polkas on every album, always believing they’re not long enough. This accordion-heavy montage does not disappoint. While I couldn’t necessarily name every polkafied artist strewn throughout, I was definitely familiar with every lifted lyric. I think his combination and range of styles (R&B, Rock, Alternative) speaks to Yankovic’s continued range expansion and broad appeal. If you’re not into a wide range of pop music, you might not appreciate Polkarama! half as much. It’s not my favorite polka (as I appreciate his classics more than the newer ones). However, it’ll certainly satiate my polkanerve until the next one bounces in. Four stars.
6. Virus Alert: Another Yankovic classic has been born – very upbeat, very addictive, original, and extremely replayable. If I played this tune back-to-back with “Hardware Store,” it’d make for a smart mix. Al’s falsetto feels natural and really fits inside this composition – with the lyrics being equally as amazing as the music itself. I find myself hitting the rewind button for this one – and not just because it’s about technology. I’m blown away by the song’s entire structure, particularly during “If you even get infected. turn off your computer, and make sure it powers down..” Can’t help but sing along. Too much fun. Five stars.
7. Confessions Part III: You might remember Confessions part I & II, so this is. what you’d never expect from a third one. Usher probably should have stopped with one, but I’m glad that Al made it a soul-bearing hat trick. The original song was ripe for satire – strong enough to support a parody. We’ve all been in love, and we’ve all done wacky (read: inexplicable) things in those relationships. Of course, I don’t know if any of you like to dress up like Shirley Temple and beat yourselves with a hockey stick – but you should enjoy the open confessional nonetheless. Four stars.
8. Weasel Stomping Day: Oh. My. God. This is Dr. Seuss in Bizzaro World! Close your eyes and try to imagine this one, folks. Not sure why Al references mayonnaise for the second time on the same album, but. that’s not the point. What sound does a weasel make when it’s stomped? There’s no safer way of finding out, I can assure you. The song is festive, but leaves the listener with a gigantic question: just exactly when is Weasel Stomping Day? I’d personally like to nominate July 27th if it hasn’t already been suggested. Let’s all celebrate! Five stars.
9. Close But No Cigar: Another Yankovic original – and likely his best non-parody relationship-centric song to date. “And I loved her even more than Marlon Brando loved souffl‚.” “And I was crazy like Manson about her…” “She got me all choked up like Mama Cass.” – Dennis Miller would be proud. The music, in and of itself, has an addictive pop quality to it. Then again, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. I really like it, but I don’t think I love it. Four stars.
10. Do I Creep You Out: I make it a point to watch the first few episodes of every American Idol season. Taylor Hicks kinda looks like Jeff Barr to me, though. I enjoy a good ballad every once in a while, so this serves my ears well. It’s over in less than three minutes, which is fine by me. My guess is that this track served as a substitute for the Blunt parody, though. I wanna lip sync this at my wedding reception – if only for shock value. Four stars.
11. Trapped in the Drive-Thru: You can always count on one extended track on a Weird Al album. This time, it was a pointed parody of a pointless R. Kelly rambling. In many ways, Yankovic did a better job with it! I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that some of these lyrics were based on actual events in Al’s life. I can tell you that Ponzi and I had the “Olive Garden” argument recently. Art imitates life. Although, Ponzi sold my bunny slippers on eBay last week. Five stars.
12. Don’t Download This Song: Yes, it’s what you think. Imagine if “We Are The World” was dedicated to the plight of the millionaire musician. The anthem is long overdue. You might have seen the video when it was uploaded to the Internet a few weeks ago. Aptly, you couldn’t easily download the encoded video. Listen to the very end – he screams “Ya cheap bastard!” Heh. The physical media was quite affordable, actually – filled to the edge with value. Four stars.
13. You’re Pitiful (Unreleased): He starts singing early, but that flub wasn’t edited out before the song was released and distributed to fans (in an unofficial capacity, as mentioned earlier). It’s too bad Atlantic had a stick up their ass about not including this in SOL, because it would have fit in well. Since I don’t listen to much popular music these days, I wasn’t tired of the “You’re Beautiful” sound by the time I heard this track. Xbox geeks will love the Halo 2 reference, but I still crack up every time I hear “farty pants.” Five stars.

Ponzi listens to artists like Chamillionaire, R. Kelly, and Usher all the time – so hip hop music regularly flows through our halls at home. It’s because of this that I find SOL so interesting and fun. Had my tastes not been influenced by my fiance’s choice of music, I don’t know how I’d feel about the album.

The included videos are somewhat fun; “Weasel Stomping Day” (Robot Chicken) and “Close But No Cigar” (Kricfalusi!) really hit it out of the park. I’m disappointed that “White and Nerdy” didn’t make the DualDisc, though – I was hoping to watch a higher quality version of it. If the visual extras don’t win you over, then perhaps the instrumental tracks and 5.1 surround sound recordings will. SOL is an absolute bargain at $15.

Perhaps other artists should start copying Al – filling their physical albums to the brim with value. Wouldn’t that be a hoot?

Don’t Download This Album