Lonely Island

OK, confession time. A long time ago, when I was fooling around in a radio production studio, I recorded a rap song. (Stop laughing at me.)

There was a time, pre-Snoop Dogg, that goofy white guys like me thought we could legitimately do stuff like that. I think I may have even played it for my wife years ago. As I recall, she just looked at me really funny, and implored me to never play it for her again.

The difference between me doing rap and the genius goofy white guys of The Lonely Island Band is vast.

When Incredibad was released back in February, I got an advance copy, and it has been in my car disc player ever since. Anyone familiar with Andy Samberg on SNL has heard a few of these tunes already; "D***k In A Box" and "Lazy Sunday" are two breakthrough videos that have been on YouTube for a couple of years now. What Samberg, and co-writers Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer have done is create an incredibly funny 19 track CD that not only parodies 90s rock, reggae, and hip hop styles, but also serves as an homage to those styles. That's no easy task. These guys understand and appreciate the music they're skewering, and the parody is in the writing, which often takes a few listens to fully appreciate.

Take, for instance Ras Trent. Only Andy Samberg could include a lyric about Selassie, and make it funny, and pertinent, in a song about a white Rastafarian college student; or as Samberg puts it, a "rude boy living in the shanty dorms."

Is every track great? No. Like all great comedy albums, some jokes are funnier than others. But taken as a whole, this is sharp, truly inspired comedy writing, with amazing production values you would not normally expect from a comedy album.

Buy this CD, and I guarantee you'll find something to laugh uproariously about. (Just don't play it for the kids - strictly adult listening.)

--Brian