mp3: Mermaid (part B)

website: http://www.conchords.co.nz/

Yes, it’s New Zealand’s 3rd or 4th most popular comedy folk band–but they’re aiming for the world now.

Back during my Danish road trip this summer, I finally got around to going through the Flight of the Conchords BBC radio series, first broadcast in 2005, I think. I knew nothing about the band initially, but had grabbed it because of the weekly inclusion of a brief phone conversation with Neil Finn during the show. The premise being, the Conchords and their manager had move to Britain to crack the non-sheep market, and were facing a new collection of trials and tribulations each week as they fought for comedy-folk stardom. And whenever situations had dipped to an all-time low, Neil would receive an unwanted call from the manager asking advice.

It was a pretty good radio series actually, but it’s worth remembering that the Conchords are a real (comedy) musical entity and have released an actual album and toured like crazy in their native New Zealand. And as well as the success of the UK stuff, they also recorded an HBO TV special in Texas last year, which I now have to watch too. So I’m feeling inspired to share a Conchord track from their Folk the World album. Yes, they’re silly, but so what? It’s only the seedy, combative world of comedy folk.

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