Episode 51: One-Hit Wonders of 1991 (LIVE for International Podcast Day)

Summary

Accelerated Culture Podcast - Episode 51: One-Hit Wonders of 1991 (LIVE for International Podcast Day) Summary

Release Date: October 1, 2024

Introduction

In Episode 51 of the Accelerated Culture podcast, hosts Lori and Scott Free pivot from their usual deep dives into entire albums to focus on the fascinating world of one-hit wonders from the year 1991. Celebrating International Podcast Day with a live format, the episode delves into two standout tracks that epitomized the alternative music scene of the early '90s: "Three Strange Days" by School of Fish and "Unbelievable" by EMF. Throughout the episode, the hosts engage in insightful discussions, share personal anecdotes, and provide comprehensive analyses of these iconic songs, enriched with notable quotes and timestamped insights.

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"Three Strange Days" by School of Fish

Band Overview and Song Introduction

Lori and Scott commence the episode by introducing School of Fish, a Los Angeles-based band that emerged in 1989. Known primarily for their single hit, "Three Strange Days", the band garnered attention in the early '90s alternative scene. Lori mentions, “[...] it made a splash, but it was this band's only thing that made a splash,” highlighting the ephemeral nature of their success ([03:02]).

Musical Analysis

Scott Free praises the song's guitar work, stating, “That chunk fuzzy distortion guitar, rhythm guitar line comes in and it's just so satisfying” ([08:15]). Lori echoes this sentiment, noting the effective use of reverse reverb and the track’s compelling rock elements. Both hosts appreciate the song’s blend of danceable beats and rock guitar riffs, underscoring its enduring appeal on platforms like Sirius XM's First Wave and Lithium.

Lyric Interpretation

Delving into the lyrics, Lori interprets the narrative of a disillusioned individual wandering the city, capturing a quintessential '90s slacker vibe. She articulates, “This is a guy who's kind of lost it. He's wandering around LA and having a strange adventure” ([10:11]). The lyrics convey themes of aimlessness and existential searching, resonating with the Gen X ethos of the time.

Music Video and Cultural Impact

The hosts discuss the vibrant and eclectic music video, characterized by “checkerboard floors,” “Dutch angles,” and “Beetlejuice-style” visuals ([10:08]). Lori remarks on its embodiment of the 1991 aesthetic: “It's the video era. Gratuitous use of green screen and compositing and solarization” ([11:00]). The video’s creative flair contributed to the song’s memorable status, despite School of Fish not sustaining long-term success.

Band's Legacy and Tragic Endings

Tragically, both founding members faced untimely deaths. Josh Clayton Felt succumbed to an aggressive form of testicular cancer in 1999 ([12:43]), while Michael Ward passed away in April 2024 due to complications from diabetes ([13:00]). Lori mentions a heartfelt tribute by Laszlo Bane, who performed a remake of "Three Strange Days" incorporating sitar elements as a homage to Felt ([14:50]).

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"Unbelievable" by EMF

Song and Band Introduction

Transitioning to their second one-hit wonder, Lori introduces EMF, an English band whose track "Unbelievable" became a ubiquitous presence in 1991. She describes the song as “completely inescapable,” emphasizing its dominance on radio and MTV ([15:05]). The upbeat, danceable rhythm combined with compelling guitar elements made it a standout track of the era.

Behind the Scenes and Band Dynamics

The discussion reveals EMF's quirky band name origin—originally standing for Epsom Mad Funkers, a nod to their humorous take on band naming conventions. Lori shares an amusing band anecdote where EMF chose their record label by performing live in a forest in England and having executives draw straws to sign them ([24:23]).

Musical and Cultural Analysis

Lori and Scott analyze the song's infectious beat and distinctive sampling, particularly the inclusion of Andrew Dice Clay's voice clips. Lori comments on the fun aspect of creating the podcast, “I know a lot about music... whenever we do an episode and we dig into it and I do my research, I learn things that I can't believe I didn't already know” ([16:12]). They appreciate the track’s blend of rock and dance elements, noting its "dance floor rock" appeal ([19:26]).

Live Performances and Band Challenges

Highlighting EMF’s live performances, Lori recounts an experience where "Unbelievable" was played multiple times in a single concert, turning into an extended dance jam ([20:31]). This phenomenon illustrated the song’s overpowering popularity, which, while beneficial for the single, may have overshadowed the band's broader musical offerings.

Commercial Success and One-Hit Wonder Status

Despite the massive success of "Unbelievable", EMF struggled to replicate its triumph with subsequent releases. Lori grapples with the question, “Why did this band that made such a splash with Unbelievable not get the same kind of traction?” ([23:14]). Comparisons made in contemporary reviews likened EMF to bands like Jesus Jones and even humorously to a “new Kids on the Block with swearing” ([23:54]).

Legacy and Enduring Popularity

The hosts acknowledge "Unbelievable"’s lasting impact, supported by listener comments like “Vision Street Wear, ftw for the win” ([19:58]). The song remains a nostalgic staple of early '90s alternative music, emblematic of the era's vibrant and eclectic musical landscape.

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Conclusion

As the episode draws to a close, Lori and Scott reflect on the fleeting nature of one-hit wonders and their indelible mark on music history. They express gratitude to their live audience and encourage listeners to engage with their content through various platforms. The episode not only celebrates the memorable tracks of 1991 but also pays homage to the artists behind them, ensuring that the legacy of these one-hit wonders continues to resonate with both old fans and new listeners.

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Notable Quotes:

• Lori on “Three Strange Days”’ appeal: “It's just so satisfying” ([08:15]).
• Scott Free on guitar elements: “That chunk fuzzy distortion guitar... just so satisfying” ([08:15]).
• Lori interpreting lyrics: “This is a guy who's kind of lost it... having a strange adventure” ([10:11]).
• Lori on EMF’s live performance: “They played it five times” ([22:02]).
• Lori on band legacy: “It was disheartening for them that this is what the crowd wanted” ([22:12]).

Final Thoughts

Episode 51 of Accelerated Culture masterfully encapsulates the essence of 1991’s alternative music scene through the lens of two iconic one-hit wonders. By blending musical analysis with personal stories and historical context, Lori and Scott provide listeners with a rich and engaging exploration of these memorable tracks, ensuring that the spirit of the early '90s alternative movement is both celebrated and critically examined.

Transcript

[Lori]

Foreign.

[Scott Free]

Welcome to the Accelerated Culture Podcast. A sonic journey through the vibrant and revolutionary sounds of the 1980s and 1990s. And now 2024 Webby Honoree for best Indie podcast. I'm Lori, along with my co host Scott Free. And in this podcast we explore how new waves stormed the airwaves in the early 80s and and gave way for the rise of alternative music in the 90s. Find us on the [e-mail].

[Lori]

Hey, that's me.

That's us. Fancy. Well, hello everybody. Welcome to Accelerated Culture Live.

I'm Laurie and I am Scott Free.

And thank you again to Jeff and Poduti Events for inviting us back for a second year. Apparently we didn't scare everybody off last year, so.

And this is my first and it's very exciting. Usually Lori and I and the Accelerated Culture podcast are a studio creation with a non zero amount of editing. So we're doing it live, let's see, without a debt.

So normally, Scott, what we do is we do an album deep Dive. Right. Our podcast is about 80s and 90s new wave and alternative music.

Yeah. And usually we got a basic format. We talk about the history of the band, we talk about the production of the album, and then we do a track by track, deep dive into the album. Analyzing lyrics, analyzing music, talking about production, and then a bit of a where are they now? Thing, because we only have half an hour, if that on today's live event. We definitely don't have time to get into a full album. Laurie and I can talk. We have a long history together and we can go at it. So we decided to do something a little different for today. Instead of a whole album, we figured we could easily Talk each for 10 minutes on a single track. So since we do whole albums usually we thought we would go with one hit wonders of the 90s. The year that we are exploring album by album is 1991 right now. So we decided to pick two one hit wonders of the alternative scene of 199091 and really get into them. And we chose a couple tracks that are very different in how big they were, but both have a quintessentially 1991 thing going for them.

Yeah. And actually, Scott, the first track that we're doing, the one that you chose, I'd never even heard it before, which.

Blows my mind a little bit. Like we have very similar musical backgrounds, musical tastes. Not always. The Venn diagram is still two circles, but they have huge overlap. And that this first track totally missed you blows my mind. You can still hear it on, you know, on. There's a rock station in Chicago, wxrt that will still play it occasionally. You can hear it sometimes on either First Wave or Lithium on Sirius XM Radio. So it's still around. It made a splash, but it was this band's only thing that made a splash. The band is School of Fish and the track is Three Strange Days.

All right, so we're going to queue up part of the video since this is a video format and yeah, right, here we go.

[Josh Clayton Felt]

For three strange days But I had no obligations My mind was a blur I did not know what to do and I think I, I lost myself when I lost my motivation.

[Lori]

And now.

[Josh Clayton Felt]

I'm walking around the city just waiting to come to walk three straight.

[Lori]

All right, so first of all, and I have this in my notes, that video is about the 1991 EST thing that ever. 1991, I love it. And we will get to the video specifically in a little bit. But first let's talk a little bit about this band, School of Fish, who somehow Laurie had never heard of. Not super surprising in that they were a one hit wonder, which is the whole point of this episode. But they were an LA band. They formed in 1989 and at their core the band was the main two guitar players and lead singer, songwriter Josh Clayton Felt was the lead vocalist and guitar player, lead songwriter and Michael Ward was the other guitar player. And they started off as a duo with a drum machine just playing around la. And I read this in a, in an online article on americansongwriter.com allegedly they started to get attention in LA when Kroc, the legendary LA rock radio station, put School of Fish in an on air battle of the bands against the Rolling Stones. And School of Fish won and so started getting more airplay on kroc. Now that may be an apocryphal story, I have not found confirmation of it. But look up School of Fish, Three Strange Days, American songwriter. And that's where I got it. And I'm willing to believe it because hey, don't let the truth get in the way of a good story. But they get signed to Capitol Records I believe and release Three Strange Days as the lead single in advance of their self titled debut album. And you know, it does relatively well. The song peaked at number 12 on the billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. And you know, I started hearing it around on radio stations when I was in college in Ann Arbor. It was making the rounds on mtv, the video that you just saw. And we can talk a little bit more about and you know, you got to think about what's going on in the LA rock scene in 1991. 1990 when they're coming up, 1991 when they release the album. And really it can be defined with a couple bands in particular. That's Red Hot Chili Peppers and Face no More. To a lesser extent. X was staging a comeback at the time and Hole was started. Courtney Love's Hole was starting to ascend. But this track comes out and it's kind of a throwback rock track. Your thoughts on the song having I guess just heard it for the first time since we started planning this episode.

Yeah, no, I enjoy it. I think the guitar work is fabulous and the lead singer's kind of cute. I'm kind of surprised this wasn't on my radar.

Absolutely. All right, so expounding on those two points. One, I am absolutely a sucker for guitar with reverse reverb. Like it's a layup for me. If you're a band and you want to impress Scot free guitar with reverse reverb, they make it sound like a sitar and you know, proud history that they're joining there. My Bloody Valentine's Loveless is full of the stuff. The same year Led Zeppelin that's the way love and rockets the telephone is empty A whole bunch of reverse reverb hits that land with me. Then that chunk of chunk fuzzy distortion guitar, rhythm guitar line comes in and it's just so satisfying and that chunk of chunk just drives throughout the song and then this big plotting beat comes on and yeah, it's just a really compelling rock track to your point. Lead singer's cute. How this song didn't make a bigger splash in the MTV video music era is beyond me. I saw another blogger say that he looks like he has Joe. He has Joseph Gordon Levitt looks and like is a good looking cat. The whole band, fresh faced young, good looking rock guys. A little shocking that it didn't make a bigger splash than it did. But the song itself is great. Let's see here. What else to say about it. You're a lyrics gal. When I am talking about the track by track in any of the albums we cover, you tend to dig into the lyrics. What's your take on three stage? On Three Strange Days I was totally.

Not prepared for this. Well, no problem.

I got you. You know, it's Three Strange Days, the opening. Let's see here. For three strange days I lost my motivate when I lost my motivation Now I'm walking around the city just waiting to come to. There's some theorizing that he's on a bender. There's some theorizing that he's having a mental break that he's just lost or just has nothing to do and wanders for three days. A couple lines that I really love. For three strange days I couldn't put a smile on my face. So they dressed me up in all their clothes and took me somewhere else. Johnny Clueless was there with his simulated. With his simulated wood grain. So I pulled up a chair and started drinking by myself. This is a guy who's kind of lost it. He's wandering around LA and having a strange adventure. You know, it's a very 90s slacker vibe. They got going again about his 1991 Gen X as you could hope for. I don't know, something about this song really spoke to the 21 year old me who was watching this on MTV. Huge fan. And then there's that video. I mean as I said earlier, it's about the 1991is thing that ever 1991. You've got the checkerboard floor with the dutch angles on the camera. Everything on a Batman villain tilt, the Beetlejuice style. No right angles in the set. The good looking guys, crazy camera zooms and pans and truck shots. You got the weird elderly couple with their tiny dogs. And then all of a sudden, okay, now we're riding bikes on a beach and somebody's stacking eggs on a naked model's spine. Sure, why not? It's 1991. It's the video era. Gratuitous use of green screen and compositing and solarization. And again, it's the 90s, baby. Let's get real 90s with it.

As a matter of fact, we did get a comment in the chat. Zabe Zabe says this is so 90s.

Oh yeah, love it.

[Michael Ward]

Yes.

[Lori]

So did I read that the lead singer Josh Clayton Felt had died?

All right, so usually when we get to the end of an album here on Accelerated Culture podcast, we do a Where are they now? Sadly, in the case of School of Fish, it's kind of sad story. After their debut album made a bit of a splash with this track Three Strange Days, they made one more album, it went nowhere and the band soon thereafter broke up. Various members of the band did their own things. Let's see here. Josh. Josh Clayton Felt went on to play tour with Tori Amos. He released solo albums Tori Amos and toured with Tori Amos and Delitri album didn't go anywhere and A and M dropped him. And then in December of 1980 or sorry 1999, he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of testicular cancer and died only one month later. Michael Ward, the other guitar player who played a great guitar solo in Three Strange Days, he went on to join the wallflowers. You can hear him on Jacob Dylan's band's big single One Headlight. He also later joined Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals. He however died in April of this year complications of diabetes. If you want to see one of the later works he performed in, in 2020, he rejoined the one time drummer of School of Fish, Chad Fisher and his band, Laszlo Bane, who you probably know from the theme song to the sitcom Scrubs. And they did a remake of Three Strange Days, including actual sitar as a tribute to Josh. And it's a really great performance, really great video and came during the beginning of the pandemic. It's a worthy tribute and probably the last thing you'll see them in.

Oh, wow.

[Michael Ward]

Yeah.

[Lori]

So I will check it out for sure. Please do. I hope our listeners do too.

All right, so as far as the big one hit wonders of 1991 go, School of Fish, Three Strange Days was my pick and yours, Laurie was my pick.

Was completely inescapable in 1991. You could not leave the house without hearing it. I am speaking, of course, of Unbelievable by emf.

All right, let's queue up that video, give it a look. And.

[Andrew Dice Clay]

Me with your questions you have me turn on lies? You're always asking what it's all about don't listen to my replies you say to me I don't talk enough but when I do I'm a fool These times I spent our real life and shoot through and leave you the things.

[Josh Clayton Felt]

You say your patrons just give you.

[Andrew Dice Clay]

Away the things you say you're unbelievable.

[Lori]

All right.

Okay.

[Michael Ward]

Yes.

[Lori]

So. So I have been advised that this is a family event and so I'm supposed to watch my swearing. So I'm gonna be. Yeah, right. For me that's a challenge.

I am but really a sailor. So I swear like a sailor. So we need a seven second delay. Pardon that I will try to watch myself.

Okay. So there actually was a four letter word in one of the samples that they use for this song. There is a sample from. I believe it's a member of the Black Panthers saying what the bleep was that? And then there's also a sample at the very beginning from. Yeah.

Oh, I mean that's what's among the things that are so fun about doing this podcast with you. For me, I know a lot about music. I have been a voracious devourer of music my whole life. This was the era where I was really getting into it and my collection expanded hugely and I feel like I know the music of this era really well. However, whenever we do an episode and we dig into it and I do my research, I learn things that I can't believe I didn't already know. The big oh sample from this track is again, about the 1991 thing ever. It's Andrew Dice Clay.

[Michael Ward]

Yes.

[Lori]

And despite that, I still like the song. My. My high school boyfriend just thought that Andrew Dice Clay was the funniest man that ever lived. And so, yeah, not all of us. Not all of us. But. But anyway, okay, so emf, at least for us in America, this seemed to come from out of nowhere. So EMF supposedly stands for Epsom Mad Funkers, because I guess they used to take some kind of salt Epsom laxatives to stay awake when they were raving. Yes, that's a yes.

And like, that is what they said their name stood for. However, their debut album, Schubert, dipped that this was the big single off of. If you listened through all 10 tracks, and I gotta tell you, not a lot of people did, this was a true one hit wonder. A lot of people bought this for that lead single. Unbelievable. And not a lot of people made it all the way through. However, when you did, you get to the end of track 10. There is a hidden track, at least upon its initial release, and there was a hidden track that will put us afoul of the clean language requirements of this episode. But the chorus of that song, EMF live, is ecstasy. M Mother blanker, mother blanker F from me to you. Alternatively, at another point in the song, E X C F for my minds, in my feet F for you to you from us to you but still it's ecstasy M Mother blanker, Mother blanker F from me to you well, and.

I did see, I remember when this came out, there was an interview with some of the band members and they were actually joking that it stood for Eat more fruit.

Huh.

Yeah, but, you know, I imagine it's one of those that just kept changing and changing. So anyway, this being this song, like I said, was just absolutely everywhere. It's. Yeah, it's got such a good. It's got a good beat, it's got a good vibe. Totally danceable. As a matter of fact, we got a comment. Vision Street Wear, ftw for the win.

I mean they were that English style that kind of came out of Madchester scene. They were known for their puffy coats and their hip hop wear and yeah, the vision street wear for sure. They were a band with a very distinctive look though. And the energy of this song and of this album made it just incredibly compelling. Dance floor rock. And it was more dance floor than rock. Although that guitar was undeniable, right?

[Michael Ward]

Yeah. Yes.

[Lori]

Scott, you actually got to see them live on this tour, didn't you?

Okay, I have related this story to you a couple times. So as I've always. I saw them play on outdoor show on the streets of Ann Arbor, Michigan where I went to school. And as I have always told the story, EMF played, they had only this was their supporting their debut album, Shubert Dip and they did not have all that much material but they had a full length concert that they were playing and they played as I tell the story, Unbelievable three times in the same concert. As I recalled it, once as the opener, once closing the main set, and a third time as the encore. Now I was just hanging out with a person who I mention in our podcast on the regular, my brother, Dr. Dave. Dr. Dave is a far more expert musician than I and has a phonographic memory. And he corrected me, okay, at that show with me. He was also attending the University of Michigan at the time. And he corrected me saying that that is not true. EMF did not play Unbelievable three times in concert. In fact, they played it five times.

And, and you know, including an encore.

That turned just into a dance floor jam that by his telling of it lasted almost half an hour.

Oh, wow.

Yeah.

And Scott, as someone like you who is a lead singer of a band, I imagine that had to be very disheartening for them that this is what the crowd wanted to hear this one song, when actually most of what's on the album's actually pretty good. There's some good stuff on this album.

I mean, that sounds like you're saying that this song isn't pretty good. And I don't know that I am willing to agree with that.

But it's not the only good thing.

But it's not necessarily like everything else on the album. And I've seen comparisons made in the writings when I was researching this saying that this band sounds very much like an early to mid period Pop will eat itself. Oh, and I'm gonna go ahead and agree, being a huge poppy myself, if you don't know Pop will eat itself, we are talking about doing A Pop Will Eat Itself and Grebo Sound episode of Accelerated Culture Podcast. So, yes, do check us out and hopefully we'll get to that soon.

[Michael Ward]

Yes.

[Lori]

But, you know, that's a compelling comparison. To me. The question is, what happened? Why did this band that made such a splash with Unbelievable not get the same kind of traction? And why didn't they go the distance?

Yeah, well, you know, I went back, I found an old article in Spin magazine right around the time this single came out. And so two things jumped out at me. The first one was that the band was being compared to Jesus Jones, which makes sense, by the way. Our next episode in two weeks is about Jesus Jones during the deep dive.

On the seminal 1991 album Doubt.

[Michael Ward]

Yes.

[Lori]

And this is one of those where if you think you know Jesus Jones because you know the big single from Doubt, you got another thing coming. That album's a banger.

[Michael Ward]

Yes.

[Lori]

The other band that they were getting compared to, this one blew my mind. They were being compared to a new Kids on the Block with swearing.

Fascinating, right? Hilarious. And that's got to be a bit of a bummer for them.

Yeah, I think so. The other thing in this article that's worth noting, I know we have to wrap it up very shortly. Apparently, according to this Spin magazine article, the. The way they chose what record label they wanted to be on, love, this is. Yeah, they actually dared the record label executive who was trying to sign them to swim naked across the lake.

It's a. Yes, but okay. Also, numerous or several record companies were actively trying to court EMF to get them to sign with them and wanted them to come to London to meet with each of them individually. And instead they said, we're going to do it this way. You all will come to watch us perform live in a forest in England, and we will have you draw straws to see who actually gets to sign us. And I guess the winner was Parlophone Records. Oh, yeah, Also the sample story.

[Michael Ward]

Yeah, go ahead.

[Lori]

All right, so you mentioned that one of the hook sample of Andrew Dice Clay doing his. Oh, that repeats throughout the song. Andrew Dice Clay was on Def Jam Records, and they needed to clear the sample in order to use it. So they flew out to LA to have a meeting with Rick Rubin, who was head of Def Jam at the time, and they met with him and he basically said, yeah, sure, just fax me the paperwork. No problem. You can have it for free.

That's cool.

But Rick Rubin at Def Jam saying, yeah, fax me is once again about the 1990s 1991 EST thing that ever. 1991.

Yeah.

A lot of that in this episode.

[Michael Ward]

Yes.

[Lori]

So we've only got a few minutes left, Scott, so I think we need to wrap this up. But thank you so much for everybody for joining us for International Podcast Day.

It was great.

Yeah. Now, if you like what you're hearing, like we said, we typically do a full album deep Dive. We release episodes every two weeks. You can find us anywhere you get your podcasts or on our website, acceleratedculturepodcast.com give us a visit, drop us a line, let us know how you found the episode. And thank you again.

How about it?

Yeah, look at this.

[Zabe]

And we've changed the stage a little bit because I'm unbelievable.

[Lori]

Hey, real quick, before we go, I just also want to give a plug to who will save Generation X? That's our friend Zabe's podcast. He's going to be doing this tomorrow, broadcasting his podcast, and I am a guest on his show this week. So the closure.

[Zabe]

So you're going to be closing out the event. It's, I think, and we're going to go a little bit over because he said there was so much good stuff on that episode. It's about 40 minutes long.

[Lori]

Okay.

[Zabe]

So maybe we could start early or I will get everybody out of here at on time. But who will save Generation X? A great show. Zabe has been a great fan of the podcast Accelerated Culture. The best way to connect, reach you, you know, how do we find you?

[Lori]

Acceleratedculturepodcast.com we're also on Facebook because we're old. We still use Facebook.

It's Generation X, baby.

Yeah, there you go.

[Zabe]

That's the word of the, of the event is Lemure. So thank you so much, Laurie and Scott, for being here. A great episode.

[Lori]

Really love.

[Zabe]

I did know School of Fish. I was. I think I was the only one in the. In our audience here that knew about Three Strange Days background vocals on that one. But it's a. I do remember that song. So thank you so much for joining.