Shadow Puppet Disco - Slam Dunk

Alex used to have a t-shirt that was a letter to Tom explaining to him the rules of basketball. I'm still left with some many questions about this t-shirt. Had Tom had been living under a rock or just woken up from a coma that he had never heard anything about basketball in his life? Why would you end a letter inexplicably with "slam dunk?" If Tom has never heard of basketball before, how is he going to know what a slam dunk is? If you could think of any adjectives in the world to describe basketball, why would non-violent be your first choice? How do Tom and Dan know each other? Why did Dan choose a short letter as the best format to tell Tom about basketball? Why didn't he try to elaborate more to get him excited about basketball like tell him about the strategy or his favorite players? Did Tom ever make it to a basketball game? What does Tom think about basketball now after reading this letter? Are Tom and Dan still friends now? What was Tom's final grade in AP Calculus? Does Alex still wear this shirt? Does Alex still think this song was pretty good? Who was the mysterious masked man appearing on the back of the long lost SPD album? What if God was one of us? Who put the Al in Alabama? Where do babies come from?

Despite all of these questions, we definitely have something that resembles a non-violent song here. Martin plays a little ditty on the keyboard before eventually going into a very repetitive tune where I read Alex's t-shirt. I remember we just thought this t-shirt was ridiculous and wanted to incorporate it into an SPD song. I think we probably put a total of like a minute and a half of preparation into creating this song before we recorded it. But this might be the most famous song ever about a t-shirt. Can you think of a more famous one?

Now I'm a Baby a Long Way from Home

Here is another long lost SPD track that never made it on one of our albums. It was recorded slightly after we finalized Awareness of Being Alive and it seems like it would fit right in on that album and even maybe be one of the standouts (which isn't that hard to do). I remember Mayank heard this song and told me that he didn't think blackholes worked that way.Also check out the sweet wicker wine bottle lamp from the 70s that our parents used to have. And the sweet digial blasphemy wallpaper on the monitor.

The Skippy Tapes - Volume 1

Joey and Tommy recorded a couple of conversations they had on the phone with Skippy in the early 2000s. This is the only evidence we still have of the existence of Skippy aside from some grainy photos. You have to appreciate how Joey pivots from the Rusty vs. Wolfie argument and then totally pwns Skippy in an argument about whether he looks like Harry Potter. Then there is an SPD style musical cacophony interlude in the middle. Also, Skippy (who's real name was apparently Chris) was pretty hung up on the concept of puberty. We should find a Canadian to break Skippy's code soon. Maybe it will have the key to everlasting puberty.

Shadow Puppet Disco - Mertle

This is an SPD track that for some reason never made it on to our 2nd album (possibly it was recorded after it was released). I didn't even realize this song existed until I was digging through the SPD folder on this old Windows 2000 computer my parents had. So, there are a few other hidden gems on there that I have rescued and will share as well. If I feel so inclined, I may end up posting video files for our more popular songs and writing blurbs about how their history, inspiration, and how they were created. For posterity.



This song file was just labeled "polka.mp3" for some reason, but I have decided to call the song Mertle. It is a bizarre track that seems like it is constantly building up to something and getting ready to spin a folksy tale with an important lesson. But it really ends up having no substance (big surprise, I know). The lyrics are weird and cliche at the same time, a random mix of sayings that could fit in a children's song or video game repeated over and over. It feels like it fits well alongside Flight #467 (or whatever) or Jovian Cowgirl. The drumming is a delight, sort of intentionally off beat and random, going it's own way whenever the drummer felt like it (maybe from the crazy mind of Alex?). And the piano playing has that wondrous SPD repetitiveness along with the competent play of Martin. There is also what may be the best use of the zip whistle ever in an SPD song. However, my favorite part is the random sound clip towards the end. I can't entirely understand it, but it sounds like some kind of children's cereal commercial. It's probably giving any of this nonsense way too much credit, but I imagine this song to be a bizarre critique of how so much pop music is style over substance, sounding exciting without really ever doing anything unique or interesting. I suppose that is sort of what SPD is all about. That and Elmer's Glue.

Stay tuned for more soon . . .

Maybe Tom Chu Should Have Been SPD's Lead Singer

Self Cleaning House

I think this woman could have easily fit in recording with SPD. Whereas SPD asked the question: "Who cares if you don't know how to play instruments if you can just write songs and have fun anyway?" she asks the question: "Who cares if you get your entire house wet, as long as it is clean without you having to do it?"

There is something that fascinates me about someone who is a big outsider who might not be an expert in any area and comes up with a crazy idea from nowhere (Daniel Johnston, Wesley Willis, Mark Borchardt, Tommy Wiseau) and despite all the evidence against them, they continue to create or carry out their idea regardless. We are too often focused on training young people to be a knowledgeable expert who knows instead of creates.



Also, what do you guy think of the new jelly bean theme? I couldn't figure out how to center the header image though.

Hatebeak!

So, this gives me the idea that the next SPD album should have a different animal guest sing on each track. I think Bogie's baritone meowing would make a fine addition to a song about hot dogs.
Also, I am not a Parrot.

Batman's Life was not in Vain

In memory of the great petting zoo fire of 1947 . . .

http://www.mediafire.com/?pb7imcd33lzbdp3

The Moon in the Sky is Crashing into a Tree

This is the hot new SPD track, Raccoon Day Dream:

http://www.mediafire.com/?d6bcueedxv8ql96

SPD Review

After showing a coworker the SPD sites (mainpage, myspace, etc) this was the review he gave:

"Fun stuff - It's like a home brew combination of King Missle, Joe Christmas, Dalek, I Love You, and Crispy Ambulance with Mad Magazine, or a writer for Adult Swim (Cartoon Network) supplying the lyrics. Thanks for passing it on!"

This seems to be the most positive and well informed SPD review ever, at least that wasn't churned out by our propaganda machine.

Purple Turkeys: My Anti-Drug

Hello everyone! I'm very happy to be here tonight at Grove Park High School. Go Timid Squids! And I have an important story to tell you about a dark time for my band: Shadow Puppet Disco. Back in the mid-80s, after SPD had achieved world-wide disinterest with the release of our first album, Sewerside Suicide, we were on top of the world and partying every night with groupies and accountants. But slowly my rockstar lifestyle spiraled out of Bolivia and made me unable to play my instruments or sing or get it up. You see, I was sniffing upwards of 20 Bounty Dryer sheets covered in Elmer's glue everyday during that time. I nearly lost my band, my cat, my moped, my lawnmower, my tapeworm farm, my chain of NASCAR-themed seafood restaurants and my dignity, until one faithful day I made a discovery that would save my life.

Well, just when things seemed like they couldn't get any worse, this commercial single-footedly helped me overcome my Elmer's glue and Bounce dryer sheet addiction:



After watching this commercial with my cat, Mister Fluffy McFluffyson, I realized I never needed to use drugs again, because this commercial gave me the same high, the same creativity spark and the same anal leakage of glue and dryer sheets, but without the undesirable side effects. Soon enough, I was bringing groupies and their pets over to watch this commercial on repeat and we had a great time, without drugs. After years of unsuccessful substance abuse treatment and in-patient hospital stays and polar bear wrestling matches, we had discovered that getting high was dumb and this cat food commercial was way more fun.

And our band got back on track too. We released a new album to fantastic critical disregard. Once again we were on top of the world and this time without drugs. So, boys and girls, remember drugs will get you nowhere, but purple turkeys will save your soul. Also, if you encounter the Yeti in a dark Winnipeg alley, ask your grandmother to give it a cracker out of her purse and then it will follow you.