The Lonely Island "Incredibad" Album Review
Funny, Absurd, Explicit, and Pulse-Pounding Debut Album
Feb 17, 2009
In a recent interview, the centenarian composer Elliott Carter observed that popular music nowadays is centered not so much on the music itself, but on the lyrics that the music underlies.
This development has made it possible for a comedic group with little musical skill like The Lonely Island to produce their own pop album. The trio of SNL alumni Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaeffer, the three guys responsible for Hot Rod and the Digital Shorts on Saturday Night Live, created the recently released album Incredibad.
The Lonely Island Youtube
Many of the album’s songs, such as "Dick in a Box", "Jizz in my Pants", and "Natalie's Rap" appeared in music videos shown on Saturday Night Live, while the constant profanity of "I'm on a Boat" consigned it to appear on YouTube.
"Jizz in my Pants" is quite funny, but the facial contortions of the video were probably the best part of the entire production. A few lines of "Lazy Sunday" are unlikely to make sense without the images flashed along with them in the video.
I’m on a Boat and Dick in a Box
On this album, the listener will find hilarious lyrics to the most banal beats and tonal progressions that audio software could generate, and the results are highly entertaining. On one hand, the song format allows The Lonely Island to deliver their humor in a more catchy and memorable manner. However, one wonders how much they are parodying contemporary pop music even as they involve some of its current luminaries like Justin Timberlake, Norah Jones, and T-Pain.
There are many laughs to be had even though there does seem to be an overload of the hip/hop sound. While the sound does veer towards rap, there is still some variance in the specific style emulated.
Carlos Santana and E-40
E-40’s verse regarding Santana, “From the heart of Napa Valley and the guitar king/ comes the sparkling wine to make a blind man sing/ Yo it’s the champagne from the man with the bandana/ I can’t stand a food with anything but Santana” epitomizes the album. Funny but well-placed lyrics abound. The Strokes guest-star and croon about the power of a boombox and Norah Jones injects personality by singing about the girl of the group’s dreams. The album even casts Natalie Portman as a gangster rapper.
In conclusion, each and every song is explicit with plenty of curses thrown around liberally for comedic effect. It culminates with the final title track which details the silly and very graphic way that the group became what they are today. It is not a musical masterpiece by any means, but Incredibad is a funny and enjoyable way to spend about forty minutes.
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