New Weird Al Chock-full of Symbolism

Alpocalypse was released 06/21/2011

Every artist he parodies is either a pawn or handler.

I have been trying to take stills from the videos, to no avail. Apparently "prt sc" doesn't work for me, and most certainly right clicking is not working either.

I doubt I need to point any out as they're so obvious in this one!

He's singing about deceased actor Charles Nelson Reily, a comedic actor best known as a panelist from the 1970's Match Game show. Some of the lyrics include:

"Everyday he' make the host of Match Game give him a piggyback ride
Yeah, two hour piggyback ride, giddy up Gene

Ninja warrior, master of disguise "

Was he actually Gene's handler, disguised as a co-worker?

"He made sweet, sweet love to a manatee
Oh yeah
Oh yeah, that was something to see, I tell ya"

In Brice Taylor's book, Thanks For the Memories, she tells of being forced to engage in dolphin porn for Sylvester Stallone's sick satisfaction. Perhaps Al actually did observe CNR indulge in bizarre fetishes.

A lot of duality/mirrored imagery, I'm not sure what the meaning is behind the Native stuff.

SO MANY symbolic tattoos in this video, oh my goodness! So many blantly featuring the devil, death, he even has a zombie Ronald Reagan skating with Hello Kitty. (I told you zombies are real!) Dragons, dolphins...another reference to Presidential Models? Even a Colonel Sanders/chicken tattoo. I want to know what his obsession with the Colonel is about! He does a Buddhist meditation pose in one scene. Is it just me or does his tramp stamp resemble a pyramid?  And why does he have a tattoo with a man aiming a gun at cherubs? One features a checkerboard pattern with two sex kittens; one has 777 written on her. There is one eye floating in a background soon followed by the Tasmanian Devil aka Taz, crucified Jesus, and Che Guevara's disembodied head "running" away from the tat-man. 

It starts off with Yankovictims?? I can't help but be reminded of Ben's closing comments in my last post on Al "...he may be a monster, uhh...but he's the only Weird Al we've got. And we will leave you with one last memory of our time on the road with him. Every morning when he'd unlock the roadies room and let us out for breakfast and re-education..." There's more in the video that troubles me. Angel's Ass toilet paper, University of Al sweater (taking a jab at the course that disects his lyrics? Eric Dubay of the Atlantean Conspiracy details the truth behind the U.S education system), Yankovic of the Sea (what does Quagadougou Burkina Faso mean?), some of the boardgames he features are Moon Landing Denial, Freud, and Cbnhba-which looks like a badly spelled version of Canada. In the laundromat he wears a shirt with his name and the number 13 while giving a double-thumbs up. He tells his girlfriend she needs lipo while beauty queen Al flashes masonic hand signs, immediately followed by a Goku-Al making another hand sign while dollar bills fly from said hand. His girlfriend and her sister appear wearing black and purple stripes and skulls, the sister with purple hair. They also changed Supercuts to Stuporcuts. At "Wallmart" Weird Al appears on the tv screens with colourful checkerboards flashing behind him. There's also a recurring psuedo-Tinkerbell casting spells on his girlfriend. I could go on, but I feel I've said enough on this video. 

Some of the lyrics:

"Burn that microfilm buddy, will you,
I’d tell you why but then I’d have to kill you!

you need a quickie confession?
we'll start a waterboarding session!"

"Yeah, we’ve got our backups all over the world, from Kazakhstan to Bombay;
payin’ the bribes like yeah, pluggin’ the leaks like yeah;
interrogating the scum of the earth, we’ll break them by the break of day!"

"Need a country to stabilize?
look no further, we’re your guys!
we’ve got snazzy suits and ties,
and a better dental plan than the FBI!

Better put your hands up and get in the van,
or else you’ll get blown away!
stagin’ a coup like yeah,
brainwashin’ moles like yeah,
we only torture the folks we don’t like,
you’re probably going to be okay!"

The video for TMZ could have been better had it lined up with the lyrics. Lyrically, Al fully highlights many celebrity "meltdowns" over the last few years. I find it odd how he focuses predominantly on my girl Britney. (I don't care what anyone says, I empathize strongly with her.) The lyrics:

"You're sort of famous
a minor celebrity
and so it only makes sense
the world would be
obsessed with every
single thing you do

They're running 'round
with their camcorders in the night
they lurk impatienly
in hope that they just might
see something really embarrassing
you do

The bad hair day and sweat-stained t-shirts
that's the story that
they are gonna feature
with exclusive pics
of your flabby behind
you think you're all alone
but that's right when you'll find

A bunch of paparazzi
popping out of nowhere
cameras in your face
and then suddenly
you're on TMZ
you're on TMZ

Following you
when you're walking down the street
and asking stupid questions
while you're trying to eat
so you cover your face
thinking to yourself
"Hey, isn't this creepy?"

And they are there praying
you'll have a big meltdown
and take a mono-lethal car chase
through this whole town
they'll be there with you
when you're going to jail
first on the scene
for every wardrobe fail

You just picked up some transvestite
seconds later
it's up on the website
get a vegas wedding
a quickie divorce
and they'll be
sneaking in
snapping pictures, of course

And if they ever catch you
picking your nose
or storming down the street
in a drunken spree
you're on TMZ

Stalking you, just waiting by your front door
trailing you through
airport security
they were TMZ

they were TMZ

[We caught this oscar nominee picking up DOG POO!
Is that a baby back there?
I pronounce you guilty, of leaving the house while FAT!
Look Who's drinking COFFEE!
everything celebrities do is FASCINATING!]

Oh, let me tell you
it's getting to the point
where a famous person can't
even get a D.U.I
or go on a racist rant
those guys are all around
so you really shouldn't dare
go to every club in town
if you just lost your underwear

Seems that every single time
a star decides to shave her hair
or ram their car into a tree
they're on TMZ

If they catch you peeing in the bushes
later on, that night
well, I guarantee
you're on TMZ
you're on TMZ

you're on TMZ

Every single celebrity
knows they're gonna be

They're on TMZ"

I'm curious as to why he brought up Michael Richards, who co-starred in Weird Al's movie UHF. I suppose Al was "done" with Michael after the whole N-fiasco.

Sources:
http://www.spinner.ca/2009/08/04/weird-al-spoofs-white-stripes-in-c-n-r-video/

Why does my lighter say Dia De Los Muertos?

While at the store today I remembered I needed to re-stock my lighters. We had cheaped out the last time, so despite having purchased many, we still had a bunch of dead lighters. While I knew Bic is bad for their animal testing (what and how, I do not know. They're listed right here on Peta's site. I have some issues with Peta, but they also do some good work. However, The Vegetarian Site doesn't list Bic as still testing on animals. Perhaps they did in the past but no longer and Peta hasn't and/or won't update/d.) they do make reliable and affordable products.

 

Trying to pick out a couple quickly, I picked what immediately attracted me. It wasn't until I arrived home that I started questioning the imagery before me, cursing myself for being such a product of conditioning:

The Prometheus flame meets the twin snakes wrapped around the heart? Originally I'd bought this because it seemed most innocent of what was available.

"A pirate's life for me" I'd rather not live such a life, thanks. But who, exactly, is the "me" behind this?

"Dia De Los Muertos". I understood the death, but not the rest. Tomzap had this to say:

"El Día de Los Muertos [Day of the Dead] originated in Mexico, before the Spanish conquest. The exact date is unknown but it has been speculated that the idea originated with the Olmecs, possibly as long as 3000 years ago. This concept was passed to other cultures such as the Toltecs, Maya, Zapotec, Mixtec and Aztecs. Zapotec and Mixtec influence are strong in Oaxaca.. The Aztec celebration was held during the Aztec month of Miccailhuitontli, presided over by the goddess Mictecacihuatl Lady of the Dead, and dedicated to children and the dead. Following the Spanish conquest of Mexico during the 16th century, there was a strong effort to convert the native population to Catholicism. There was a good deal of reluctance on the part of the indigenous people which resulted in a blending of old customs with the new religion. All Saints' Day and All Hallows Eve (Halloween) roughly coincided with the preexisting Día de Los Muertos resulting in the present day event which draws from both. This "compromise" was necessary both to preserve church membership and to satisfy church authorities that progress was being made in converting the indigenous to Catholicism. Although the skeleton is a strong symbol for both Halloween and los Días de Los Muertos, the meaning is very different. For Días de Los Muertos the skeleton represents the dead playfully mimicking the living and is not a macabre symbol at all."

So blending Mexican holidays in with Western culture [slapping it on a lighter] is acceptable, because it appears we're welcoming multi-culturalism with open arms, but public celebration of Christmas is offensive? Just another mind-fuck dulling us to the NWO.

The ones I didn't buy:

Another Day of the Dead lighter? Warning of things to come?

Looks like the spider is moving in on its prey.

On the surface they're jumping on the "Vampires are hot" bandwagon, but there's more to it than that.

A Chinese dragon and a ..flaming meteor?

Why does this American propaganda even get sold in Canada? My people like to beLIEve we're not patriotic to the USA.