Three Chords and a Laugh

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Thursday, January 22, 2009

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Subversive humor plays a big role in the history of pop music – from Chuck Berry and Bob Dylan to the Talking Heads and Nirvana. Today: how rockers use wit and satire as weapons of defiance. Also: Luke Temple is a musician from Brooklyn who is the founder of Here We Go Magic, a one man project that prides itself in layered sound and homemade vibes. He joins us for a live performance in the studio.

Humor as a Weapon

Anti-establishment artists have flocked to rock music since Day One. We look at some of the greats with music writer and professor Iain Ellis, author of the book "Rebels Wit Attitude: Subversive Rock Humorists."

Soundcheck blog: John Schaefer on one of his favorite rock humorists

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Here We Go Magic

The new project from Brooklyn-based musician Luke Temple is called Here We Go Magic. The group’s debut is layered with spooky sounds. We get a preview of the forthcoming album with a live performance in our studio.

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Rebels in Wit

By John Schaefer

Music and humor have proven to be difficult bedfellows. It’s very easy to slip slide away into the realm of the “novelty” record – you know, the kinds of things that Doctor Demento based his radio show on for years. Setting witty verse to music risks obscuring the words, ...

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