It becomes abundantly clear throughout the show that despite a voice which invokes images of creepily pleasant, naive elderly man with glasses sliding down his noise, he is extremely well-connected and not shy about flaunting that fact. Demento reintroduced it on the air and later performed it live at his 20th anniversary show. Despite being written by Benny Bell in the ‘40s, this song was arguably given new life in 1974 when Dr. We hear recognizable classics like “Rat Fink” performed by Balzac, “Surfin’ Bird” by Nobunny and the school-yard staple “Shaving Cream,” redone with punk novelty lyrics by “Uncle Floyd” Vivino & Oogie. Kicking off the record is one of the most iconically weird songs that the show made relatively famous - Barnes and Barnes’ “Fish Heads,” performed here with an uncharacteristic pop-punk energy by Osaka Popstar. Whether or not any of the songs have any merit on their own almost seems irrelevant next to the experience of listening to the entire proceeding as a unified show. It’s arguably more of a podcast than a typical record, but the flawlessly executed production value shows the decades’ worth of experience at play here.
Dr demento fish heads full#
To its credit, the record follows the same formula as the show and brings you two full hours of everything from original intro and outro bumpers to thorough commentary in between each of the 60 tracks and segments. Here, the former starship captain and recording artist grumbles his way through the Cramps’ “Garbageman.”
Both the Misfits and Joan Jett are in attendance, as is perhaps a less surprising novelty record performer, William Shatner. The very notable influence the show has had over the years is evident in the fact that an all-star cast shows up in the liner notes and often in audio, either through performance in the songs or simple shout-outs recorded exclusively for the record. Demento blasts you with enough genuinely interesting factoids about the performers that you’re left with the impression it couldn’t be any other way. But by the time you really get into it, it ceases to matter.
How this record crossed paths with the punk genre in particular is anyone’s guess and that is one of the few things never mentioned during the two hour show. Among the show’s dubious credits is the introduction of the world to “Weird Al” Yankovic, which is a good thing, at least for Al. The show was syndicated and broadcast until 2010 when it finally moved from radio to the web where it still broadcasts to this day. From novelty and comedy songs to songs that seem to have just been written as an early form of musical trolling, they’re brought together and presented by your requisite carnival barker and odd music enthusiast, Barret Eugene “Barry” Hansen, aka “Dr. Specializing in playing the otherwise unplayable, it’s not just strange or unsettling music - it’s music that is often so over the line that it would never see the light of day but for the desire to put it on display in what amounts to an audio freak show. Since 1970, the show has carved out a space in the air waves as an alternative to the alternative. Demento Show” is something of a legend if you’re past a particular age.
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