An estimated 92% of us experience earworms. Despite the annoying times we can’t get a chorus or a hook of an overplayed pop song out of our heads, getting a really good earworm stuck can be one of the best things, ever. We here at Nerdist are dead set on bringing you those types of songs—even if only for the weekend. So shove this into your grey matter!
This is going to be a quick one this week folks! [Note to Editors: Don’t be all like “Ugh, Finally” in an editor’s note] [Editor’s Note: Ugh, finally.] This week’s band is another anomaly in my musical library as I can’t really pin-point exactly where or when this music crossed my path. They’ve been featured in an NBA video game but I’m more of a “WHEEEE I’m Spider-Man” type gamer so it couldn’t be that. My brain keeps going back to a thought that today’s band was featured on the awesome but short-lived The Middleman series. Can anyone out there confirm or deny this? Does anyone have it recorded? Is it lost to the world? Oh well, let’s get to it. Here are some tunes from The Russian Futurists.
“Let’s Get Ready To Crumble”
The Canadian indie pop band the Russian Futurists sincerely hit the nail on the head of that genre. Front man–and technically entire band–Matthew Adam Hart’s synth-heavy pop tunes may not be for everybody but within moments of the song starting you can understand why I chose this as an earworm. His catchy music paired with almost sardonically earnest [Editor’s Note: Can things be both sardonic and earnest? Is it only in pop music?] lyrics make up a song that tells the listener he’s doing nothing more than what he enjoys. The song’s chorus has got a sense of honesty that some might consider cynical but I think is more about enjoying things no matter how fleeting they may be at times.
“Precious Metals”
There’s a distinct thing Hart does with his lyrics in a lot of his songs that I don’t think there’s an exact term for. You’ll notice overlapping statements in the lyrics that normally wouldn’t fit in the traditional way most think of words matching a song’s tempo or cadence. He breaks up words and elongates syllables as if to fit them to the beat of the music which in most cases would be cringe-worthy but with Hart, it’s done in a way that feels like the right thing to do for the music.
“Paul Simon”
So deceptive is this song’s hook that I can’t actually pinpoint whether or not it’s a sample from a real Paul Simon song or just something incredibly close to it. Still, there’s no doubt it’ll get caught in your head just the same. Beyond the catchy aspects of the song there’s something about a world where people perform the song you’re listening to that seems like it’d be an amazing super power.
There you have it, three tunes by the Russian Futurists. Sad to say I’ve shared yet another group that doesn’t appear to be touring any longer but that doesn’t take away from enjoying the existing discography. The group is still available on iTunes and of course there are a smattering of videos across YouTube. Now can someone track down The Middleman series on a streaming service? It was fantastic but not “$30 from Best Buy” fantastic.
Fan of the Russian Futurists? Do they remind you of any other bands worth listening to? Let’s discuss in the comments below!
Image: The Russian Futurists
Blake Rodgers writes for Nerdist from Chicago, IL where he lives happily with his Guinness World Record for High Fives. Be his pal by following him on Twitter (@TheBlakeRodgers)
