VARIOUS ARTISTS / Drink To Bones That Turn To Dust: A Toast To Oingo Boingo [2006]

The 2006 Oingo Boingo tribute album, Drink To Bones That Turn To Dust is the perfect example of how a tribute album can executed with grace and quality.
Instead of trying to please the youth of today by using modern pop-rock acts, we're treated to a variety of independent artists covering a plethora of musical genres, including bluegrass, country, jazz, hip-hop, punk, R&B, cabaret and even a piano ballad.  Not every take is my cup of tea but they're all done with creativity and a passion for the original and sits fine with me.

3½ instrumental pedophiles out of 5

Songs Of Note: JACK THE ORIGINAL / Heard Somebody Cry; SICK / Nasty Habits

VARIOUS ARTISTS / Dead Bands Party: A Tribute To Oingo Boingo [2005]

Like every other tribute album, 2005's clumsily titled Dead Bands Party is a hit & miss collection of Oingo Boingo covers.
Gathering together a host of contemporary indie artists, the compilation has quite a few respectable takes on the originals giving it their own twist while remaining true to them as well.  However there's a few tracks on here that sound like the band heard the song a few times, rehearsed it twice and hit record.  Including such acts as Reel Big Fish, Finch, Plain White T's, The Aquabats seems comfortably fitting for such a record.   Even with a few questionable electronic pop bands on the bill as well, it's not quite as bad as it could be.

3 Willie Dixons out of 5

Songs Of Note: REEL BIG FISH / We Close Our Eyes; THE AQUABATS / Controller

OINGO BOINGO / Anthology [1999]

1999's Anthology, the third of four Oingo Boingo compilations is really the only one you need if you're looking for a proper career retrospective of the off-kilter party rockers.  

Starting with their 1979 EP and leading right up to their 1995 double disc live album, the collection covers each era of the band with only a few minor misses (all of which will differ with each dedicated fan).  It doesn't really feature any rarities or b-sides and misses out on releasing the few live recordings unavailable on the Farewell disc, all of which makes it easy for longtime fans to pass on .  Minor quips aside, this is the definitive compilation to seek out for the uninitiated, seeing as it covers all 4 "versions" of the groups sound.  

4 mystic knights out of 5

Songs Of Note: Oingo Boingo

OINGO BOINGO / Forbidden Zone [1982]

Oingo Boingo's frantic Forbidden Zone soundtrack to the even more frantic cult crap classic by Richard Elfman is notable for a few reasons.  

First off, it's frontman Danny Elfman's first dip into the world of composing for film and secondly it's Oingo Boingo's first album that saw their transition from a fucked up arthouse act to an off-kilter surf-pop band. It might be a little more listener friendly than their previous works but it's still far from anything even remotely normal.   If you can imagine what Cab Calloway would sound like if he were in an animated version of The Rocky Picture Horror Show composed by Mr. Bungle, then you might get an idea as to what it all sounds like.  It might lack the precision and quality of Elfman's later film compositions but the raw arrangements and surrealism is what shines here.  

4 moochers out of 5 

Songs Of Note: Forbidden Zone; Squeezit The Moocher

OINGO BOINGO / Farewell: Live from the Universal Amphitheatre [1995]

After nearly 25 years as an act, forming in 1972, off-kilter surf nerd group Oingo Boingo decided to call it quits.
Instead of withering away, the band celebrated one last time with a near 3 hour Farewell set one Halloween night in 1995 and recorded it for DVD & CD.  Hopping around their entire discography (excluding the dismal Dark At The End Of The Tunnel) the setlist has something for every generation of fans, including some brand new songs written for the show.  With their Klezmer meets jazzy African rhythms, wallpapered over intricate yet subtle orchestrations and unconventional scales, then slapped with a heavy new wave/punk vibe, it's easy for the finer details to get lost in the murky sound recording but that's all right considering the high energy of the show.

4 clowns of death out of 5

Songs Of Note: No One Lives Forever; Who Do You Want To Be

OINGO BOINGO / Dark At The End Of The Tunnel [1990]

18 years after forming, Oingo Boingo are showing signs that it's clearly time to wrap things up with 1990's Dark At The End Of The Tunnel.

Maybe it's because Danny Elfman had composing duties on Edward Scissorhands, Darkman, Dick Tracy and Nightbreed the same year but this album is a far cry from the party time favorite of John Hughes films.  Gone are the angry goofs of their previous albums, here's some adult pop crap that is void of any sort of personality, interesting arrangements or originality instead.  Elfman's lyrics are still top-notch but his musical ambition has run dry here.  Hell, the band even completely ignored the album on their Farewell tour setlist.  Thankfully they popped out one last great album before calling it quits.  

1½  songs from Midian out of 5

Songs Of Note: Skin; Flesh 'N Blood

OINGO BOINGO / Boingo Alive [1988]

In a curious move, California dance rockers Oingo Boingo decided to re-record their "greatest hits" on a soundstage without the benefits of studio trickery proving how tight of a live act they were. 

The 1988 double LP Boingo Alive speeds up many of the older songs, beefing them up with crunchier guitars, heavier bass and alternate horn arrangements.  Unfortunately without the multiple vocal tracks to enhance the strength of many of their older songs it weakens the impact of the "punkier" moments.  It's a wonderful setlist, with the added bonus of 6 brand new songs, that is probably one of the two best "albums" to recommend to a Boingo virgin.

4 of the Seven Dwarves left living out of 5

Songs Of Note: Cinderella Undercover;  Winning Side

OINGO BOINGO / Boi-Ngo [1987]

New Wave Nerd Rockers Oingo Boingo continue down the slippery slope of commercially friendly pop music on 1987's Boi-Ngo.   

It might be poppier but songwriter Danny Elfman manages to throw in some warped textures & rhythms to keep things...well...Elfman.  Being the first album since he started scoring films, it seems a bit too professional and serious for a stage act that used to chase each other around with giant fish & half-naked girls.  Some of my favorite Boingo songs are on here and ones I loathe most as well.  

Who would have guessed Elfman's classic Beetlejuice score would surface less than a year later?

3 more helpings of nervous energy out of 5

Songs Of Note: New Generation; We Close Our Eyes

OINGO BOINGO / Dead Man's Party [1985]

Oingo Boingo briefly broke onto the mainstream charts with 1985's Dead Man's Party.  Their massive change in sound had a lot to do with it and in turn put off a lot of longtime fans.  Gone are the kooky time signatures,  the punk up attitude, the snarky darkly humorous lyrics, frantic guitar frolics and wild offbeat vocal styles.  All of it replaced by a smoothed over sound that is reminiscent of a quirky version of Duran Duran.  Not to say it's a bad record, in fact I'm awfully fond of several of the songs, it's just I preferred the Boingos who weren't afraid to offend.

3 dead Bus-conductors out of 5

Songs Of Note: Dead Man's Party; No One Lives Forever

DANNY ELFMAN / So-Lo [1984]

Officially considered a solo outing from Danny Elfman, 1984's So-Lo is really the 4th Oingo Boingo album in disguise seeing as all the band members play on the album.  Due to legalities between changing record labels, Elfman & the Boingos were unable to use the band name when they first moved to MCA records.  

It's not entirely implausible, listening to the extreme change in musical styles from Boingo's previous records. Focusing more on a down tempo synth-pop sound rather than the abrasive punked-up guitar sound of their earlier works.  It's sparks up some interesting ideas musically & lyrically but Elfman doesn't seem to know how to keep the new sound interesting like he would on the future Boingo albums.

2 missing cannibalistic monologues out of 5

Songs Of Note: Gratitude; It Only Makes Me Laugh

OINGO BOINGO / Good For Your Soul [1983]

Continuing the trend of critics hating them and fans loving them, dork-rockers Oingo Boingo really come into their own on 1983's Good For Your Soul.  

Scaling back the punk sound they had been getting a little to comfortable with, Elfman brings the ska and African influences in the foreground.  Juggling country and new wave into the mix, Good For Your Soul has a difficult time really gelling together into a cohesive listening experience, which is unfortunate considering each song showcases Elfman's strongest songwriting yet.

3½ Laws of Dr. Moreau out of 5

Songs Of Note:  Pictures Of You; Little Guns

OINGO BOINGO / Nothing To Fear [1982]

California's nerd wave group Oingo Boingo ironed out the kinks in their sound on their second album, 1982's Nothing To Fear.

Making use of a vast array of bizarre instruments (some of which the band created and built themselves) makes for a unique sound that fits well with frontman Danny Elfman's erratic mood swings and sometimes offensive opinions.  The musical confidence is apparent in Elfman's cocky vocal delivery but it's fine considering the 8-piece band that he's juggling.  

Widely trashed by critics yet universally acclaimed by artists of all sorts, Nothing To Fear is a career highlight for Boingo.

4 rumba-phones out of 5

Songs Of Note: Grey Matter; Reptiles & Samurai

OINGO BOINGO / Only A Lad [1981]

With folks like Mr. Bungle, Nirvana, Joss Whedon, blink-182, Seth MacFarlane, No Doubt, Primus and even Sir Patrick Stewart speaking highly of Oingo Boingo it's a wonder why they were never that popular.  

Well praised through the artistic crowd, the dance pop band blended ska, new wave, punk and even chamber music to create the unique sound  frontman Danny Elfman would later on embellish with his film scores.  Their debut album (as a rock band) 1981's Only A Lad was filled with touchy lyrical subjects such as pedophilia and masturbation all put to catchy nerd rock.  The Boingo haven't quite established their sound on this album and are still lingering on their theatrical style from before but it's a great start.

3½ Kinks out of 5

Songs Of Note: Only A Lad; Nasty Habits

OINGO BOINGO / Boingo [1994]

Oingo Boingo's final studio album 1994's Boingo is a bitter-sweet farewell to a band who had been recording since 1976.
Incorporating the Gothic sounds of frontman Danny Elfman's film scoring into the mix is every fan's dream come true. Nearly dropping all signs of the horn section, The Vandals guitarist Warren Fitzgerald steps in giving it a modern feel. With lyrical jabs at organized religion, the kids these days, American fueled war and society's silly elitists, Elfman borders dangerously close to grumpy old man cynicism.
Juggling horror-laced material, good ol' rockers and insanely beautiful ballads, Boingo is Elfman's finest hour in the rock music genre. Another addition to my desert island disc collection.

5 Tender Lumplings out of 5

Songs Of Note: Insanity; Helpless [available on cassette only]