I was on the fence about seeing Polyphonic Spree, the pysch pop, one-time MTV 2 darlings, this week at Crescent Ballroom, so I sat myself down to watch some videos in preparation.
The band is entirely clad in white choir robes, and the of members grows from twelve to thirty depending on the night. Each of them also seems to be poisoned with happiness, as they bounce with their hands to the sky. The band's front man, Tim DeLaughter can be seen in the foreground of all of the shows with his white choir-robe on, bouncing up and down, like some stoned Jesus.
"He's got some energy," I thought to myself as I sipped my Kool-Aid, and continued to do my research.
The piccolo and the violin, present in all of the recordings, got my head moving from side to side and suddenly, I was forced into a euphoric mood. That music made me happy.
What if this is exactly what crazy prick Tim DeLaughter wants me to do? Does he want me to get so into this music that I go and buy a white robe and practice my xylophone so the next song they come out with about sunshine can feature me, bouncing up and down like all the rest of them? I started to look closely at the faces of the people playing the keyboards and the triangles, and they looked more scared-happy than happy. It was then I realized that maybe each of them is being held there against their will. Is Tim DeLaughter using mind control?
Is Polyphonic Spree a band or a cult? I mean come on? White robes and being happy? Really?! This got us thinking...
Is this a band or a cult? Here are five bands that seem like they could be either
Menudo
Besides Twinkies, they will be the last thing alive after the apocalypse. They have been around since the '70s, and nobody seems to notice that the teenage boys rotate in and out. Is the mastermind behind Menudo brainwashing new recruits into singing for this group? There must have been in the upwards of 40 different members by now.
The Residents
The Residents have been around since the 1970s and people still don't know who the hell they are. They claim to be making music for the art of it, and don't want to expose who they are, but for all we know, there could be thousands of these sonsofbitches.
Devo
I love Devo, but they are strange. When I look at the band, I have an overwhelming feeling that they know something I don't. Yellow plastic jumpsuits and flower-pot looking "energy domes?" And what's with all of the command lyrics? "You must whip it."
Insane Clown Posse
There's only two guys in the posse, but a legion of dedicated, face-pained followers. They've even got their own social networking site. That's right, get ready for JuggaloBook.
Wolves in the Throne Room
This black metal band moved to a ramshackle farm in Washington where they live together and grow their own organic vegetables. They have a following, and unfortunately for their followers, WITTR don't allow flash photography at any of their shows, which are only lit with firelight. The front man, Aaron Weaver, has said, he wants people at his shows, "to lie on the floor and cry."
