Typing in the name of any popular song on YouTube will lead to a slew of parody videos – most of which were made in people’s basements. There’s also a number of professional parodies — most of you have probably seen Alanis Morrissette’s version of “My Humps” or any number of Weird Al videos.

However, some artists have referenced other bands in the videos for their own original songs. These videos, though often amusing, are many times done more as homage than parody — here’s a couple from the past few years that you might have missed… (more…)

When a film writer bases a script on a novel, it often sits somewhere between his own ideas and those of the original author. Take, for instance, a movie like “10 Things I Hate About You,” which recreated Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew as a modern teen romantic comedy. Hardly Shakespeare’s original intention, but it can’t be completely credited to the new writers either.

The same concept can be applied to certain songs. We’ll call them “reinterpretations” – songs that aren’t exactly originals, but are something more than covers. Let’s take a look at 10 artists who used older songs to create something new from their own unique perspectives. (more…)

Whatever you do today, make sure to go out and vote!! It’s time to select new leadership for this country because Bush’s 8-year tenure in office is drawing to close. Love him or hate him, he has been rather entertaining at times. He’s also given comedians a lot of material over the past 8 years, especially Will Ferrell.

Will Ferrell as President Bush:

Bush as himself:

“Girl! I wanna take you to a gay bar.”

With that immortal opening line, Electric Six both garnered their biggest hit and assured their future failure. You see, there is nothing worse for the longevity of a band than starting a career with a novelty hit — it’s almost a guaranteed ticket to one hit wonderland. Think about it: Right Said Fred’s “I’m Too Sexy,” Sir Mix-A-Lot’s “Baby Got Back,” Nada Surf’s “Popular” — all songs that were major hits, but were too quirky, funny, or generally off the wall to let the bands break free from their goofball shackles.

And the truth is, most bands that begin with a novelty hit will take a few more stabs at another success and then fade into obscurity. However, in the five years following debut album Fire, Electric Six pulled out four more records — most of which were actually pretty effin awesome. While their first album was mostly dancefloor fun, later work became more genre spanning, and, as a lyricist, singer/principal songwriter Dick Valentine proved he had something of a knack for cultural satire. (more…)