With all respect and reverence to the Chairman of the Board, this is the singer who most captures my imagination at present. (”At present”= roughly three hours.)
Please, ignore his figure skating costume, and his hair-helmet… this video is from the unforgiving 1980s. Just tell me — is he greatness, or is he just a madman? And I beg of you, don’t answer until you’re reached at least 01:38.
Two footnotes:
1) This man is known more for his skills as a drummer.
2) He is singing in an invented language called Kobaïan.
What think ye?
39 responses so far ↓
1 Joe Deceiver on May 14, 2008 at 10:39 pm
The singing was actually very good, but for the first few minutes the bass line sounds a bit ‘out of it’, for some reason I can’t quite put my finger on…
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2 Hugh on May 14, 2008 at 10:46 pm
I just want to reinforce the fact that Bill’s footnotes are 100% true.
My vote is with “greatness,” especially post-1:38.
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3 Take5 on May 14, 2008 at 11:11 pm
I was reminded of Lenny Pickett’s sax screeching out the highest of the notes in the altissimo register at times. Other times, an ambulance siren. I think I’ll go with utterly confusing.
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4 Kappy on May 14, 2008 at 11:36 pm
I never knew that Anton Chigurh was such a beautiful singer.
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5 the horrors of spider island « Subtle Bluntness on May 14, 2008 at 11:56 pm
[…] one of the comments said over at the Rifftrax blog where I stole this video from, “I never knew that Anton Chigurh was such a beautiful […]
6 doloras on May 15, 2008 at 12:34 am
Yes! Christian Vander gets the props he deserves!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magma_(band)
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7 Ebeth on May 15, 2008 at 2:36 am
It’s great to see the Pentecostal church choir finally putting their tongue-speak into a rhythmic beat.
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Reply from MSTJedi on May 17, 2008:
Good lord, that was my first thought. Great now I’ll be having flashbacks from my time as a holy roller for days now. Thanks, Bill. Thank you so bloody much. That and my ears are bleeding.
8 mrbasehart on May 15, 2008 at 2:47 am
Man… Should someone make their sex noises into a song? Scary.
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9 R.A. Roth on May 15, 2008 at 3:18 am
Say, Christian Vander, get a language those not from a parallel dimension can understand! Then we’ll be impressed as opposed to totally annoyed with great gouts of blood streaming from our ears!
Randy (deaf but not a member of Def Leppard)
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10 bondfool on May 15, 2008 at 4:00 am
What TV show was brave enough to expose his greatness?
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11 Mary Arline on May 15, 2008 at 4:18 am
He sounds like the love child of Tiny Tim and a howler monkey.
That said, I admire a man with a high vocal register, and the cajones it takes to share that gift with the general public.
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12 Botchinator on May 15, 2008 at 4:45 am
Dammit Bill.
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13 MikeP on May 15, 2008 at 4:45 am
Oh great. Now I’m going to have that song stuck in my head for days. Thanks a lot, Bill.
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14 The Professor on May 15, 2008 at 6:06 am
This did not make my dog happy.
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15 Ben on May 15, 2008 at 7:08 am
With all due respect to yours and Kevin’s taste in lead singers, you should be down on your knees worshipping your leader (and lead throat thing), Oderus Urungus.
http://oderus.com/
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16 Conor Lastowka on May 15, 2008 at 7:55 am
Careful Bill, evidently these guys have some friends in high places. From Wikipedia:
“The band has a number of high-profile fans. World famous snooker player Steve Davis is one of their biggest fans, and even organised a concert in London so he could watch them.”
(he’s the only one of the “number” of “high profile” fans listed)
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17 MarkAnrew on May 15, 2008 at 8:17 am
I think he sounds like a goat, one being neutered by milkmaid with cold hands and a firm grip.
Tom Jones could outsing him from beyond the grave; and the guy isn’t even dead yet.*
Love,
Mark
*And hopefully Tom will continue to delight and entertain on THIS side of the grave for years to come.
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Reply from Amanda on May 17, 2008:
I had a feeling that was why they only showed him from the waist up, so as not to give away the reason for his castrati-like range.
Also, kobaian? More like cocaine.
18 wurwolf on May 15, 2008 at 8:54 am
Dirk Diggler called, he wants his hair back.
Oh, and he thinks he can cover this song.
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19 Casey on May 15, 2008 at 8:54 am
… That sounds… so familiar… Xena?
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20 Cap on May 15, 2008 at 9:17 am
I’m gonna have to go with the audience on this one. You may be able to hear me applaud, but you’ll never see it.
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21 JackTheRIFFER on May 15, 2008 at 11:51 am
Damn it! All the windows in my house just shattered!
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22 Adam on May 15, 2008 at 11:56 am
So dudes were singing songs in goofy made-up languages at upsettingly high pitches all the way back in the ’80s, huh?
Take THAT, Sigur Ros!
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Reply from Scooter on May 15, 2008:
I’m glad someone made the Sigur Ros reference.
23 SIRHAMHAT on May 15, 2008 at 1:09 pm
He is pretty amazing, but he looks like Lilly Tomlin on steroids… And by that, I mean, he looks FABulous!!!
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24 Carpeteria on May 15, 2008 at 2:37 pm
i prefer the lighter, balder, jazzier version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS0pKRBdHFA&feature=related,
watch out for that breakdown around 6:00 - it might be TOO jazzy for you… fair warning.
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25 ShutterBun on May 15, 2008 at 3:38 pm
Now I know where Elizabeth Fraser from Cocteau Twins gets her lyrics.
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26 RemmieBarrow on May 15, 2008 at 3:45 pm
He seemed to love his microphone a bit too much.
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27 Rob McMonigal on May 15, 2008 at 6:48 pm
I have no idea why he’s not doing his usual Magma thing, but I can tell you that if you’re into a heavy-metal beat and one hell of a power-drum, Magma are awesome (and really not like this at all).
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28 Onil on May 15, 2008 at 7:18 pm
Bit of trivia: This song is about Eric Clapton’s son.
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29 G-Force on May 15, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Ahh yes, Christian Vander of Magma fame…
If you liked that, youll love this one…
http://youtube.com/watch?v=a73XLkf43-s
Over at the Berklee College of Music (where I go to school) some buddies of mine turned me on to this tune. Musically its actually quite a solid and complex diddy…
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30 Isai on May 16, 2008 at 3:27 pm
Now I know where the inspiration for the Javier Bardem character in “No Country For Old Men” came from. The hair, the look. The singing must’ve been left on the cutting room floor. Aside from that they’re twins.
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Reply from Stacey on May 17, 2008:
Amen! I thought so too.
31 Stacey on May 17, 2008 at 11:01 am
Looks like a Romanian Joel doing the Sidehackers song on E.
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32 Cubicle Gangster on May 18, 2008 at 1:16 pm
Thank God I clicked that link… for a minute I thought you were offering your respect and reverence to Carrot Top… wrong Chairman of the Board I guess.
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33 suzanne on May 20, 2008 at 8:28 am
i keep thinking he’s saying “dirty hoes” in the chorus.
and his muscular arms are certain to crush the microphone like a cola can, but his gentle curls will stay remarkably in place as he does it. that’s talent.
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34 Len on May 20, 2008 at 9:50 am
When this started, I think he kinda looked like Joel. Joel on some serious brain-altering chemicals.
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35 Tim S. Turner on May 20, 2008 at 3:54 pm
Oh my dear God. What the hell did I just watch?
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