Now, most of you who read this may already know the history of “Weird Al” Yankovic. He was taught to play the accordion at the age of 6, he was really smart as a kid and excelled academically. He was introduced to the world by Dr. Demento. He has since released tons of albums, made tons of fans and the rest as they say, is history.

Now, the last album that he released was “Straight Outta Lynwood” in 2006 and let’s just say that the whole world has been waiting for when Weird Al released his new album. When I saw that he released a new single “Whatever You Like”, I remember making a comment that said that it had been “too long since a Weird Al album was released.”, at the time they thought the album would be released in one year but as the time passed, my comment eventually became fact.

In the years that have passed, a new era has come along us; the era where electronics rule supreme and YouTube is all the rage. Now, Weird Al has managed to parody an era effectively in his album releases (most of his best album releases have been released at the appropriate times.) and well, he is noted as the king of parody but as he released songs in 2009, I felt a certain feeling of disappointment rising.

In 2011. He released a single from his album called “Perform This Way”, a parody of Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way“. It was released due to the fact that it was denied by Lada Gaga for inclusion in his album but it turns out that a few days after the single was released, it was revealed that Lady Gaga has never heard it before in her life and after hearing it, she approved it quickly and Alpocalypse got a release date of June 21^st.

Days later, the album was released. Now mostly everyone was wondering what would be on the album (except for the songs he released in 2009.), due to the tracklisting containing parodies of Miley Cyrus to Taylor Swift to even… Hanson! And with the songs he released before and the videos he planned to put out at the albums released, he couldn’t disappoint now right?

Well as the album release came, the reviews for it weren’t as positive as expected. Turns out people either thought the album was amazing or mediocre. It was understandable due to the long time between releases and the subject perspective of comedy. Besides, this was the first album Weird Al had released in 5 years… Some of them were amazed, some of them were disappointed, some of them were just glad a Weird Al album came out…

And the fate of the world has all come down to this, a review of Weird Al’s “Alpocalypse”. I know that the fate of the world relies on this review but I really didn’t find anything that matched the man’s previous albums.

1. PERFORM THIS WAY
The first song on the album is a parody of the hottest song out there right now. Coincidence? Probably… I didn’t really find anything interesting about “Born This Way” and this parody just feels blah without visual aid. Speaking of which, the video that Weird Al made for this song fits it perfectly and actually makes it good, even though it did have some stuff I disliked about it.

2. CNR
Well, I’m sure Charles Nelson Riley would appreciate this from beyond the grave and I am very sure The White Stripes would appreciate this song for well but aside from the production of this song, it’s just not my cup of tea. Hey, I never really did find those Chuck Norris facts interesting or funny… He does provide some good outrageous facts but most of it just feels commonplace and safe. Yeah, I said it. The video is visually interesting though… Be forewarned that this song is loud as shit, you may need to turn down your speakers for this one folks.

3. TMZ
Taylor Swift never really had the popularity until Kanye West came up and took the mic from her, now her popularity is through the roof. As such, Alfred decides to parody her song “You Belong To Me” for a trip down TMZ’s paparazzi tabloid lane. Already it seems like Weird Al has chosen the wrong era to release this album. Noted, most of the music on the radio sounds like crap but this slate of music makes Weird Al feel uninspired to say the least. I have to admit, Weird Al’s lyrics on the subject are good and spot on and the voice pronouncing headlines are okay but the enjoyment factor is not up to par with previous Weird Al songs, or even releases.

4. SKIPPER DAN
Okay, I’m sure that Weird Al’s idea about hearing some guy on the Jungle Cruise off-handedly referring to his failed acting career inspired him to make this song but aside from the people who work on the Jungle Cruise, I don’t think mostly everybody who listens to this song will feel the same way. I’m guessing Daniel here must manage to survive his job on the thinnest of margins, as he we hear him complain about how it’s the same routine everyday and how he would rather make better life choices then to be a Jungle Cruise skipper. The video just makes me hate this song even more and it just makes me think of Daniel as some guy who gets high and acts miserable despite the fact that he is getting a paycheck that janitorial people would envy, making this song essentially well… an overindulgent song about a guy who complains about his life despite the fact that he makes a decent living. (Side note: there are videos for all 12 of the songs and while all of them are visually entertaining (and use different visual styles), it gives off the feeling that the songs don’t work without these visual representations. Man has the YouTube age changed him, most of the earlier songs in the catalog had you imagining the situation rather then watching a video that describes the situation to them. I do admit that these videos are better then the ones from 50 Cent’s “The Massacre“)

5. POLKA FACE
This doesn’t really live up to previous polka medleys in Weird Al’s career, it lacks the kind of color and uniqueness that Weird Al polkas usually have. But as an alternate take of today’s pop music… Yeah, it works out well when you think about it in that way, seeing as how Al’s take on those songs sound better then the original. So yeah, if you think of it is a medley with better versions of pop music, your disappointment will be cut in half.

6. CRAIGSLIST
I don’t know if Weird Al actually read them off of Criagslist or if he made them up but this is an enjoyable excision through the world of Craigslist set to Alfred’s version of a Door’s song. Sure it doesn’t live up to the high expectations you expect from Weird Al Yankovic but this will relate heavily to people who have been on Craigslist, especially those looking in those sections where the fun could be had. Personally, I think of Craigslist as a different place then what Weird Al is singing about due to the fact that I’ve been using it to shop for cars but hey, it can be oddly pleasing if you had Weird Al ready every funny listing to you over Doors music, plus; the video that accompanies it is pretty cool.

7. PARTY IN THE CIA
This is the “Party in the USA” parody everybody’s been talking about. You know, the one where Weird Al takes a pop and glittery song and makes it into a dark and depressing song… I have to admit, this is alright and his story about a CIA agent is okay but this doesn’t feel as dark as Weird Al said it would be. Additionally, this song cannot compete to the time when Girl Talk mashed up M.O.P’s “Ante Up” with this very song…

8. RINGTONE
Let’s get something out of the way; Alfred’s style parody of Queen about annoying ringtones fails to live up to expectations. While it feels bigger then life, there is a small feeling that Weird Al isn’t comfortable, despite the fact that he wrote, produced and sang in the song; and it shows. The video made by the long gong TV show SuperNews! doesn’t do much to add to an already weak song itself. Maybe he should of add more spontaneity to this album.

9. ANOTHER TATTOO
This parody of “Nothin’ on You” has Weird Al getting his rap on while he sings on the chorus. I have to give props to Weird Al for managing to sound like two different people but the song itself ultimately finds itself dragged into average territory, despite Weird Al’s best attempts. I do admit, I liked Alfred’s skit at the end where he plays the guy who’s getting tattoos.

10. IF THAT ISN’T LOVE
Yup… This is the love song that Weird Al fans have been clamoring for, except for the fact that it feels less like a parody and oddly enough, more like a love song that Hanson themselves would sing. In that definition it’s a good enough song but as a style parody it’s only okay… Now that I think about it, there hasn’t been one original song or a style parody that’s not based on a popular or more obscure type of genre artist. I’m have to wonder why Alfred here didn’t include either of those on this album…

11. WHATEVER YOU LIKE
I didn’t think this song was any good when it was released. In 2011, nothing has changed. Weird Al does manage to sing about the glamor of cheapskate living but as you listen you’ll find that there’s something missing, and that something is charm… Yup, without charm this song isn’t any memorable as the song that preceded it, and that song is “White and Nerdy”. I have always imagined they would focus on the card the same they they focused on the card based on the line in the song like in that “White and Nerdy” video. Watching that video now, I see that they did that exact thing, so my prediction was right; and I feel so gilly for it.

12. STOP FORWARDING THAT CRAP TO ME
Alpocalypse ends with what I find to be a great diversion. Alfred finally diverges from the sounds of today and takes on a style parody of Jim Steinman. The result, the best song on the album. This is the Weird Al that you’re used to. You can feel the laughs and the sympathy as you listen to Weird Al’s displeasure with the crap that he gets in his email, it’s that good! The way he changes up the instrumental makes the parody even more effective and provides a really nice surprise to the song itself. Now if only the rest of Alpocalypse was like this.

FINAL THOUGHTS: “Weird Alfred” Yankovic finds himself 5 years too late and as a result, finds himself in an era where he finds himself out of place with his surroundings. As such, he tries his best to adapt to the situation and finds himself mostly missing the mark in tons of spots (save for a few.) Most of the songs lack the impact and the memorability that older Weird Al songs had and there is a lack of variety in both the songs he’s parodying, the artists he is parodying and the subject matter as well. You know, back then it was better when he was just making albums on his own accord; he didn’t have to worry about relevance or whether or not his songs would appeal to anybody. Today, with YouTube and the fact that anybody can parody a song; he has convinced himself that he needs to compete and appeal to the internet culture (seeing as how it’s the culture that controls which is famous or not.). In my opinion; Weird Al needs to get back to using the internet to release songs as he comes up with them as he did with “Whatever You Like” while releasing albums at appropriate times to parody various era’s.

BUY OR BURN: Burn this one Weird Al fans. There are some good songs in this one but as a complete package, there is really no need to own this album.

BEST TRACKS: CNR (if you like the lyircs), Polka Face, Craigslist, Stop Forwarding That Crap To Me

Now you’re probably thinking hey, who created this theme, did you pay for it? To answer that question, I created it and I didn’t pay a penny to create it or get someone to create it. This theme took 4 or maybe 5 days to make, had to apply the code, fix positioning errors, make it cross compatible with other browsers you know, the usual. It’s dark, slick, techy, modern and it’s not even released for public download (when I do post the theme for public download, I’ll give it a proper name and download link.). I just feel with everyone using themes other people created or that are available at WordPress.com. Note that I do respect the people who create the themes and the people who modify it to suit their needs, but it’s just the fact that people can do everything with these themes without touching it. You’re also thinking why there is no sidebar on the right if you’re just looking at this post, well people might not know it yet but I don’t want my sidebar full of useless and unnecessary widgets or nothing leaving along noticeable trails of blank space which nothing will ever take up or use. There most of your questions answered.

Also note that due to the economy and various budget issues, I do not have enough money to buy anything geeks glamour over these days. So I cannot get that iPhone and start my photography career, I can’t get that iMac that I ever wanted and even so, me and my family are probably going to end up in the streets. I know I’m overreacting but I’m just here to ensure you that the following sections I depicted in my mockup will be available eventually. Also note that the Podcast is going along fine, I have a studio setup complete with a pop filter, microphone stand, USB studio microphone, though I do need to find a way for people to browse episodes. Also while I haven’t started work on my debut album "Hello! My Name is Taylor Karras" yet, I’ve been writing up some lyrics to replace some songs that I don’t think fit on the CD but it’ll probably be out by May of 2009, possibly later or earlier.

So, that’s it for me. Welcome my website, what appears to be a long winding road heading nowhere. So please, sit back and subscribe, also enjoy the ride.