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Music

20 of the Flat-Out Funniest Songs in Rock ‘n’ Roll

By Tom Hawking on

In an attempt to save you (not to mention ourselves) from the general Monday-morning awfulness that tends to follow a lovely spring weekend, Flavorwire has compiled a playlist of indie/rock/generally guitar-based songs that are genuinely funny. These are 20 of the flat-out wittiest and most amusing songs we know — and we guarantee that at least one of them will make you chuckle. (Note: we’re discounting actual comedy songs here, so no Lonely Island/Flight of the Conchords/etc.) Keep the hilarity going by adding to our list in the comments. … Read More

Music

20 Hilarious (And Often Adorable) Photos of Debauched Rock Stars With Cute Kids

By Tom Hawking on

Many awesome Stooges-related things have come out of the last week or so, not least the band’s new album (which is actually quite good) and their killer performance at New York’s Le Poisson Rouge. But perhaps most awesome of all is the photo that’s been making the rounds of Iggy clutching two kids in junior versions of his trademark sequined jeans. They look terrified, he looks delighted, and the whole thing is many kinds of awesome. So, in a similar spirit, here’s a selection of other debauched rock stars with cute kids. You’re… Read More

Music

Pulp May Be Gone for Good

By Judy Berman on

Remember all those years we paid to see Jarvis Cocker solo, enjoying those performances and that new material but all the while praying he’d just break into “Lipgloss” already? We got our wish two Novembers ago, when Pulp announced a reunion performance at 2011′s Isle of Wight Festival, followed by a slew of tour dates.… Read More

News

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

By Caroline Stanley on

1. As predicted, this was the best Thanksgiving box office weekend ever. Was it because the slate of films was a lot better than it usually is, or just the diversity of the the offerings? [via Buzzfeed]

2. That’s one way not to be invited back to China: Elton John dedicated the show… Read More

Music

20 Brilliant Musicians on Why They Make Music

By Tom Hawking on

Here at Flavorwire, we’re constantly fascinated by the creative process and what drives people to be artists. In the past, we’ve looked into musicians discussing their songwriting process, and we’re similarly interested in what drives people to start creating in the first place. We’ve delved around and come up with a selection of quotes from our favorite musicians about how they got started on music, why it is they do what they do, and/or what they’re hoping to achieve with the creation of their art. The results are both revealing and fascinating.… Read More

Music

10 of the Funniest Love Songs in History

By Tom Hawking on

Jens Lekman’s new record I Know What Love Isn’t is out this week, and on the whole it’s a pretty morose affair, as befits its status as a breakup album. Still, even on a record this subdued, Lekman’s signature humor can’t help but shine through, despite the fact that he’s left some of his funniest recent songs (namely “Waiting for Kirsten” and “An Argument With Myself”) off the tracklisting. The fact that Lekman’s songs are often as witty as they are moving is something that we’ve always liked about him — after all, love is frequently as bewildering, ridiculous, and, yes, funny as it is wonderful and inspiring, and love songs are a whole lot more effective if they eschew clichéd romanticism for realism. With that in mind, here’s a selection of wry, witty, and/or plain old silly love songs that make us laugh, starting with one of Jens’ best. Let us know your favorites in the comments. … Read More

Music

Watch a Documentary on Ziggy Stardust Narrated by Jarvis Cocker

By Emily Temple on

If you have an hour to spare this holiday weekend, please allow us to suggest David Bowie and the Story of Ziggy Stardust, a wonderful recent BBC4 documentary on everyone’s favorite alter ego. Narrator Jarvis Cocker begins in appropriately heavy terms, booming out, “Forty years ago, in millions of living rooms across the British Isles, a strange alien creature was beamed onto our television screens. With bright red hair and multi-colored space suit, his unearthly appearance shocked the nation. But for many teenagers who experienced this televisual visitation, it would change their lives forever… Music on Planet Earth would never be the same again.” We can’t argue with that. Click through to watch the documentary, with talking head appearances by everyone from Elton John to the remaining Spiders from Mars. … Read More

Politics

Jarvis Cocker, Pete Townsend, Johnny Marr Publish Open Letter in Support of Pussy Riot

By Judy Berman on

If you haven’t educated yourself about Pussy Riot, the anonymous, riot grrrl-inspired Russian punk band/activist collective, it’s time to read up. (We suggest the Guardian‘s coverage.) Three women alleged to be part of the group have been in jail for months and are currently on trial for hooliganism — a charge that could… Read More

Music

Excellent Photos of Awesome Musicians Hanging Out Together

By Tom Hawking on

One of our favorite features run by our friends at excellent UK website The Quietus is their regular excerpts from the Rock’s Back Pages archive. They recently exhumed an old article from the NME, wherein Nick Cave, Shane MacGowan, and Mark E. Smith held a “summit” at a south London pub. As it turns out, we happen to own this exact NME – we found it for $1 in a second-hand record shop years ago — and leafing through the article again got us thinking about similar great meetings of the minds that have been caught on film over the years. We’ve put together a gallery of some of our favorites, with grateful acknowledgment for the title and a few of the shots to the wonderful Tumblr Awesome People Hanging Out Together. … Read More

Pop Culture

16 Cartoon Characters Voiced by Rock Stars

By Jennifer Lewis on

Once upon a time, we were flipping through TV channels when suddenly… SpongeBob SquarePants and, uh, David Bowie? His voice is a great bit higher as Lord Royal Highness, almighty king of “Atlantis SquarePantis,” but you can’t fool us, Bowie — we’ve always known how much you love to play royalty. Inspired by the amusing discovery, we went on to unearth 16 strange cartoon characters voiced by 9 unexpected rock stars. Check ‘em out after the jump, and hit the comments to let us know the others that you’ve found over the years. Oh, and we didn’t include musicians who have voiced cartoon versions of themselves, or else this thing would be 95% The Simpsons. Sorry, Keith and Mick. … Read More