The music industry, rather stagnant lately from relying on the cliché installations of alternative rock albums and the gratuitous thumping club beats of hip-hop and R&B singers, is finally seeing an arising and unpredicted trend that brings variety back to the music industry: musical comedy.
One of the most popular artists of this genre, a trio of comedians known as The Lonely Island, has been moving slowly into the mainstream spotlight with their satirical songs and catchy tunes.
The group, formed in 2001, consists of Andy Samberg of Saturday Night Live fame, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone. They busted onto the scene with the ever-popular holiday song "D*** in a Box," featuring Justin Timberlake, and the SNL digital short, "Lazy Sunday," featuring Chris Parnell.
In "Lazy Sunday," Samberg and Parnell rap about how they want to get cupcakes on their way to see the "Chronic-(what!)-cles of Narnia."
The group's most recent installation, "J*** in My Pants," features Samberg and Taccone singing about premature ejaculation. After appearing as an SNL digital short, the video found its way to YouTube and racked up an impressive 15 million views in its first month.
While the topics of The Lonely Island's songs may seem frivolous and crude to some, they have undoubtedly provided music lovers and the industry with some much-needed comic relief.
Their album entitled Incredibad is due to release on Feb. 10. It includes their already popular singles, as well as some new tracks.
The DVD that accompanies the album includes all of The Lonely Island's popular YouTube videos such as "Just 2 Guyz," which is about two seemingly lame, young men having a party, and "Bing Bong Brothers" which is a parody on the Ying Yang Twins' "Wait (The Whisper Song)."
The Lonely Island even has a number of celebrities, such as Jack Black, T-Pain and Julian Casablancas of the Strokes, providing guest vocals on several tracks.
The concept of musical comedy is not new; comedic duo Flight of the Conchords perfected the art of the "funny song" with their BBC radio series and eventual HBO series, which premiered in 2007.
Even musical legend Frank Zappa experimented with satirical songs on his solo album Sheik Yerbouti, originally released in 1979.
The Lonely Island's album has yet to be released, but needless to say, fans of comedy and music alike are waiting with bated breath to hear the quick and witty lyrics of Samberg, Schaffer and Taccone.