Dec022008
Nothing compares 2 Girl Talk
Filed under Uncategorized by emily reily
Feed The Animals
“Feed the Animals” by Girl Talk- Out Now, Available for download on pay-as-you-go basis at Illegal Art. The CD is out now.
Do you remember that goofy Toni Basil cheerleader song “Mickey”? Or what about “Jessie’s Girl” by Rick Springfield? Of course you do. They’ve been sitting in the dark recesses of your mind for years, and now they’re back, along with Ace of Base, Faith No More, Heart and hundreds of other artists in the form of Girl Talk’s new CD, “Feed the Animals”.
Girl Talk is the name of musician Greg Gillis, who actually used to be an engineer and has made the radical move to song mash-up engineer. Gillis takes little tidbits of samples from radio hits and hip-hop or rap songs, and puts them together to create new songs. It’s like a music trivia lovers’ dream. While the concept is probably new for a lot of people, “Feed The Animals” is something that deserves a listen.
Besides using well-worn radio hits, Girl Talk also uses deep tracks from artists such as Radiohead, Genesis, Temple of the Dog and The Guess Who, but the majority are songs or artists you would normally hear as you wiz around the radio dial. It remains to be seen if this is truly art, or simply copyright. The cd is upbeat and fast-paced. Sometimes the blends seem effortless, at other times a bit choppy.
Although the songs don’t run longer than 4:47, sometimes it’s difficult to get your bearings. It’s easy to forget how the song started when you’re two minutes into it. But what’s good about “Feed the Animals” is that if you don’t like a certain song- say Kenny Loggins‘ “Footloose,” appears- that’s OK, it won’t hang around long. Some parts of songs are sped up, like the chorus from The Carpenters’ “Superstar,” bringing a very different vibe to the new song.
The backbone of many of the tunes are hip hop and R&B-based, samples from LL Cool J or Jackson Five. Then he’ll rip in some Nine Inch Nails, Faith No More or Twisted Sister on top of that. Among other artists and songs that appear on “Feed the Animals” are Phil Collins, Huey Lewis and the News, The Cure, “Maniac” from the movie “Flashdance,” Queen, The Band, Sinead O’Connor, Elvis Costello, Michael Jackson (during his Jackson Five and “Off The Wall” days), James Brown, Chicago, The Police, 50 Cent, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Rod Stewart, and Dexys Midnight Runners.
One of the more interesting songs is “What it’s all about?” which features two Beastie Boys songs, followed by Collins’ “In the Air Tonight.” The portion where Busta Rhymes is married with Police’s “Everything she does is magic” is tantalizing. James Brown pops in for a visit, and a tiny section of a Lauren Hill song can be heard. Kanye West and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” make their mark. It’s like a puzzle that fits together perfectly.
Kelly Clarkson’s “Since You’ve Been Gone” is spiked quite shockingly with Nine Inch Nails’ “Wish” on “Here’s the Thing.” “No Pause” starts right in with Missy Elliot’s “Work It” that pumps with Nu Shooz’ “I Can’t Wait.” The resulting melody comes off so catchy it melts. On “Still Here,” Blackstreet’s “No Diggity” raises up Kanye West’s “Flashing Lights” to a dreamy new level of soul that sounds like it was meant to be.
Is it art or just a guy ripping off actual musicians? The line between real music and programmed sound goes grayer by the day. What matters though is these creations should still evoke memories of when music was simpler and shows that those old beats are not yet dead.
Download this track now: “Still Here”