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seedarklyxeroWelcome to SeeDarkly Sunday DisCOVERies:
a weekly exploration of goth, industrial, & dark alternative cover songs!
First time here? Click here for details from first entry.
There's a lot of consideration that goes into just which cover I'll feature here each week. (Probably more than necessary given the expectations anyone may actually have of me, but I'll always attempt to give my best.) For instance, with my excitement for this weekend's opening of Thor:Ragnarok, I've spent the week struggling with how I could tie-in to that. My inner dialog went something like this: "Is there a song about a character? Hela? Maybe about a "Death Goddess?" No luck... Maybe there's an industrial cover of No Doubt's, Hella Good? No? We know Immigrant Song is definitely on the soundtrack now but I already featured that when the trailer came out... What else is on the soundtrack? A Willy Wonka song? Nah. What else? Scored by Mark Mothersbaugh? Of Devo? hmmm... let's search covers of... OH GAHWD just look at this HULK-LIKE beast doing a cover of... Ok. THIS can work!" Of course, with such blinders on, I overlooked totally the possibilities of something relating to Guy Fawkes on today of all days, but maybe you'll appreciate that title above a little more now. ;) :
Rummelsnuff - Mongoloid (Devo)
Mongoloid, by the American new wavers Devo, was their first single, released before they shortened their name from "De-Evolution" in March 1977. It was then included on their B Stiff EP and then re-recorded for their first album, released in August 1978, titled, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! Devo's operating artistic thesis at the time was summarized by the idea that mankind was dysfunctional and regressing, not evolving as its collective ego might argue. The lyrically simple Mongoloid, written by vocalist Gerald Casale, was intended to question anyone's assertions of superiority based on skewed ideals that value capitalism, employment, and wealth.
Unfortunately the message got lost and there was a significant public outcry about the song because of a belief the band was making fun of the mentally or physically disabled, causing it to be banned from many radio stations. Casale was adamant in interviews that he wasn't "making fun of Mongoloids but rather making fun of 'normal' people who do make fun of Mongoloids!" Mark Mothersbaugh remembers however that those very people that public was seeking to the defend were fans of the song. In a different interview he states, "the odd thing is that we got a lot of fan mail from the parents of Down Syndrome kids who got all excited when they heard it and said, 'It’s a song about me.'" He further noted, "they were happy to have a song about them. They weren’t going, 'Oh, someone is making fun of us.' It wasn’t making fun of mongoloids. It was kind of questioning why the value system of humans is about going out and getting a job, just mindless toil."
Despite any amount of offense or outrage over the song, it is one of Devo's most-covered tracks, rivaling their hit, Whip It!, having been covered over 20 times in a variety of styles and around the world. The list of artists who have covered Mongoloid includes Sepultura, Jupiter, Human Torches, & The Valkyrians.
German musician Roger Baptist, formerly a member of Kein Mitleid, Freunde der Italienischen Oper, and Automatic Noir, is an imposing, perhaps cartoonishly hyper-masculine, hulk-like figure of an artist who now works under the pseudonym Rummelsnuff. He has developed a style of industrial he defines as "derbe strommusik" that is part electropunk, part EBM, and part maritime shanty/labor folk. His version of Mongoloid seems to appear first on a 2005 EP titled, Snuffkumpel. It's unclear however if it is the version on his 2005 instrumental album titled, Snuff Me!, or the one on the vocal version of the same album released a few months later under the title, Rummelsnuff Made Me Do It (Snuff Me! 2). The track also seems to appear on two other albums before finally appearing on what Baptist seems to regard as his first "official" Rummelsnuff release, the 2008 album, Halt' Durch! As for why he chose to cover the song, there is some indication from his biography, Das Buch, published earlier this year, that there may be no motivation other than it simply being one of his childhood favorites. (There may be more to the story, but google translations of German can only get you so far.)
In his hands, lyrics sung nasally and higher pitched by Devo are growled deeply and the original bouncy chipper rhythm is mutated into a doomy unstoppable throbbing bass-heavy juggernaut.
'Snuff said. Marvel at Mongoloid:
The Cover:
(strobe warning for those with seizure risks)
The Original:
Next week:
Another way I could've gone to tie this entry to Ragnarok has more in common with the character, Grandmaster, Elder of the Universe and the Lord of Games, contesting champions in colorful costumes beyond the boundaries of time and space! But since the track is on the down tempo side, it's better suited for Second Sunday Slowly!
Comments, suggestions, discussions, etc... welcome!
(You do NOT need a Dreamwidth account to comment, but all comments are screened for spam prevention.)
Due to an unfortunate scheduling conflict I only have one event to DJ this month. Of course, details can be found on my schedule if you'll be in western Mass and care to attend! ^_^
Explore the darkness,
-Xero
Previous DisCOVERies
Oct 29 - 5X5: Bonecollectors/Dead Brothers/Camping Car/Godhead/Pink Skulls - Bela Lugosi's Dead (Bauhaus)
Oct 22 - Strvngers - Pet Sematary (The Ramones)
Oct 15 - The Cramps - Goo Goo Muck (Ronnie Cook & The Gaylads)
Oct 08 - Perturbator - Come To Me (Brad Fiedel)
Oct 01 - Kebabträume - More Than A Party (Depeche Mode)
Directory of All Previous DisCOVERies
a weekly exploration of goth, industrial, & dark alternative cover songs!
First time here? Click here for details from first entry.
There's a lot of consideration that goes into just which cover I'll feature here each week. (Probably more than necessary given the expectations anyone may actually have of me, but I'll always attempt to give my best.) For instance, with my excitement for this weekend's opening of Thor:Ragnarok, I've spent the week struggling with how I could tie-in to that. My inner dialog went something like this: "Is there a song about a character? Hela? Maybe about a "Death Goddess?" No luck... Maybe there's an industrial cover of No Doubt's, Hella Good? No? We know Immigrant Song is definitely on the soundtrack now but I already featured that when the trailer came out... What else is on the soundtrack? A Willy Wonka song? Nah. What else? Scored by Mark Mothersbaugh? Of Devo? hmmm... let's search covers of... OH GAHWD just look at this HULK-LIKE beast doing a cover of... Ok. THIS can work!" Of course, with such blinders on, I overlooked totally the possibilities of something relating to Guy Fawkes on today of all days, but maybe you'll appreciate that title above a little more now. ;) :
Rummelsnuff - Mongoloid (Devo)
Mongoloid, by the American new wavers Devo, was their first single, released before they shortened their name from "De-Evolution" in March 1977. It was then included on their B Stiff EP and then re-recorded for their first album, released in August 1978, titled, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! Devo's operating artistic thesis at the time was summarized by the idea that mankind was dysfunctional and regressing, not evolving as its collective ego might argue. The lyrically simple Mongoloid, written by vocalist Gerald Casale, was intended to question anyone's assertions of superiority based on skewed ideals that value capitalism, employment, and wealth.
Unfortunately the message got lost and there was a significant public outcry about the song because of a belief the band was making fun of the mentally or physically disabled, causing it to be banned from many radio stations. Casale was adamant in interviews that he wasn't "making fun of Mongoloids but rather making fun of 'normal' people who do make fun of Mongoloids!" Mark Mothersbaugh remembers however that those very people that public was seeking to the defend were fans of the song. In a different interview he states, "the odd thing is that we got a lot of fan mail from the parents of Down Syndrome kids who got all excited when they heard it and said, 'It’s a song about me.'" He further noted, "they were happy to have a song about them. They weren’t going, 'Oh, someone is making fun of us.' It wasn’t making fun of mongoloids. It was kind of questioning why the value system of humans is about going out and getting a job, just mindless toil."
Despite any amount of offense or outrage over the song, it is one of Devo's most-covered tracks, rivaling their hit, Whip It!, having been covered over 20 times in a variety of styles and around the world. The list of artists who have covered Mongoloid includes Sepultura, Jupiter, Human Torches, & The Valkyrians.
German musician Roger Baptist, formerly a member of Kein Mitleid, Freunde der Italienischen Oper, and Automatic Noir, is an imposing, perhaps cartoonishly hyper-masculine, hulk-like figure of an artist who now works under the pseudonym Rummelsnuff. He has developed a style of industrial he defines as "derbe strommusik" that is part electropunk, part EBM, and part maritime shanty/labor folk. His version of Mongoloid seems to appear first on a 2005 EP titled, Snuffkumpel. It's unclear however if it is the version on his 2005 instrumental album titled, Snuff Me!, or the one on the vocal version of the same album released a few months later under the title, Rummelsnuff Made Me Do It (Snuff Me! 2). The track also seems to appear on two other albums before finally appearing on what Baptist seems to regard as his first "official" Rummelsnuff release, the 2008 album, Halt' Durch! As for why he chose to cover the song, there is some indication from his biography, Das Buch, published earlier this year, that there may be no motivation other than it simply being one of his childhood favorites. (There may be more to the story, but google translations of German can only get you so far.)
In his hands, lyrics sung nasally and higher pitched by Devo are growled deeply and the original bouncy chipper rhythm is mutated into a doomy unstoppable throbbing bass-heavy juggernaut.
'Snuff said. Marvel at Mongoloid:
The Cover:
(strobe warning for those with seizure risks)
The Original:
Next week:
Another way I could've gone to tie this entry to Ragnarok has more in common with the character, Grandmaster, Elder of the Universe and the Lord of Games, contesting champions in colorful costumes beyond the boundaries of time and space! But since the track is on the down tempo side, it's better suited for Second Sunday Slowly!
Comments, suggestions, discussions, etc... welcome!
(You do NOT need a Dreamwidth account to comment, but all comments are screened for spam prevention.)
Due to an unfortunate scheduling conflict I only have one event to DJ this month. Of course, details can be found on my schedule if you'll be in western Mass and care to attend! ^_^
Explore the darkness,
-Xero
Previous DisCOVERies
Oct 29 - 5X5: Bonecollectors/Dead Brothers/Camping Car/Godhead/Pink Skulls - Bela Lugosi's Dead (Bauhaus)
Oct 22 - Strvngers - Pet Sematary (The Ramones)
Oct 15 - The Cramps - Goo Goo Muck (Ronnie Cook & The Gaylads)
Oct 08 - Perturbator - Come To Me (Brad Fiedel)
Oct 01 - Kebabträume - More Than A Party (Depeche Mode)
Directory of All Previous DisCOVERies