BY JON R. LaFOLLETTE
VARIOUS ARTISTS — THE BOB’S BURGERS MUSIC ALBUM (SUB POP)
One of the year’s most unlikely success stories isn’t unlikely at all. Granted, it ain’t very conventional —112 mini-songs and vignettes from an animated sitcom wherein the titular family’s musical instigator is a woman voiced by a gay man. As a fan of the show, I purchased the vinyl as a collector’s item and left it on my bookshelf to gather dust. But after rearranging furniture around the house and making my record player more accessible, I gave it a whirl and was reminded why the music is such an integral part of the show in the first place: impeccable pop know-how mixed with enough brevity to keep the punch lines a-coming. And at just under two hours, there are jokes here in spades. Some of the laughs rest in the show’s warped realism and diminishes their accessibility (the longest track is a medley from an episode concerning a Die Hard musical). But the uninitiated need not strain to grasp the more elemental bits: a son admitting his fear of snakes, a wife relishing date night, a boy-crazy girl who’ll do anything for a kiss, the satisfaction of a “BM in the PM.” Treat yourself. Put this on shuffle and have a few giggles. It’s a small way to remain sane in these terrible times. GRADE: A-
Key Tracks: “I Want Some Burgers and Fries” / “Not Bad for Having Three Kids” / “Mononucleosis”
THE RIGHT FIT
The opening theme song for Bob’s Burgers, a 60-second ditty featuring ukulele, xylophone and brass, was written by show creator Loren Bouchard (above). Bouchard appeared on the Song Exploder podcast to detail what went into creating the show’s theme: “I literally stumbled across a ukulele at a flea market, and it lit me up,” Bouchard said. “And it was very exciting. I knew I’d found something that I’d been waiting for my whole life. It was an instrument that fit my hands, and my ears and my sensibility.”
YOUNG THUG — BEAUTIFUL THUGGER GIRLS (ATLANTIC)
To experience certified weirdo Jeffery Williams is to remember that expectations are silly things. Three years removed from his trap-rap peak he’s since evolved into one of the game’s premiere iconoclasts. He aims to please on his own terms, slurpin purp, slurrin’ rhymes and stackin’ paper with glee. The terms here, however, are a stretch even for his unbounded sense of direction. 14 glossy songs produced by fellow ATLien London On Da Track. All but one (the stoner anthem featuring — you guessed it — Snoop Dogg) written with a romantic bent that plays to his auto-tune addiction and penchant for hooks. These are pop songs, not street bangers, and therefore live and die by the hook. That’s the most glaring fault, here. Too few ear worms to make this genre experiment stick. Much of the second half is devoid of flavor and grows stagnant. But if his pop life fantasies fail, he’ll make a worthy comedian. Favorite one-liners include: “I’m fresh to death you know I should be coughing.” “She plan on havin’ more kids than God.” “Ain’t talkin’ Nicki, I’m ‘bout to have a ménage.” Other areas where he succeeds include fatherhood and cunnilingus. That both are intricately related is a joke not lost on him. GRADE: B+
Key Tracks: “For Y’all” / “Daddy’s Birthday” / “Family Don’t Matter”
COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN
Young Thug was awarded his first MTV Video Music Award on Aug. 27 for his work on “Wyclef Jean,” which went viral and received more than 28 million views on YouTube. The clip won the award for best editing, but Young Thug was apparently the last person to become aware of the victory. The day after winning, he took to Twitter to proclaim his confusion. “So no one was going to tell me that I won an award?”
A+ Rare masterwork
A Near flawless
A- Run-of-the-mill good
B+ Flawed but notable
