They rocked our souls and our minds. Here's a short list of the Top 15 nerdiest musical groups of all time.
#15 Weezer. Weezer is largely considered the granddaddies of modern Nerd Rock. In all honesty, there really isn’t that much nerd in their rock, but me thinks it’s their geeky fashion that propelled Weezer into nerd stardom. Unlike other bands of the day, which projected this angst-ridden dark macho grunge image in the 90s, Weezer presented a more light-hearted and fun side of rock. Sporting cardigans, buttoned down shirts, and thick glasses (worn by lead singer Rivers Cuomo) on stage, Weezer basically looked like they raided Mr. Roger’s closet. Weezer is most remembered for songs like “Say It Ain’t So,” “Buddy Holly,” and “Hashpipe.”
#14 Beastie Boys. Nerdcore rappers like MC Lars and MC Frontalot definitely owe a tip of the hat to the hip-hop classic Beastie Boys. While most hip-hop artists in the 80s were rapping about social issues, gang violence, drugs, money, and women; the Beastie Boys were rapping about partying, girls, monkeys, science, and intergalactic space. If that’s not nerdy, I don’t know what is.
#13 David Bowie.
If you were a geek in the 70s, chances are you were probably listening
to David Bowie. David Bowie was
singing songs about space before it was ever cool to sing songs about
space. Honestly, I don’t think
anybody has ever pulled off ‘space songs’ quite the way that Bowie has. Dressed like a sexy rocker from Mars,
Bowie inspired many a nerd to believe that they too could be rich and famous
and marry an African supermodel. Plus, David Bowie gets super geek cred
for starring and singing in The Labyrinth.
#12 They Might Be Giants.
Most people know TMBGs from their insanely catchy song “Istanbul (Not
Constantinople).” As you dig
deeper though, you will realize that there is more to TMBG than meets the
eye. I’ll be the first to
admit that their songs do get annoying after a while, but there is something to
be said about the talent of creating an entire song about a scientific particle
(think “Particle Man”). Or
constructing a love song that metaphorically compares your heart and undying
love to a birdhouse (think “Birdhouse of My Soul”). Now that’s talent.
#11 Rasputina.
Finally, a band not headed by nerdy white dudes. Rasputina thankfully adds a little bit
of double-x chromosomes to the list.
Fronted by cellist and singer Melora Creager, Rasputina is a band
obsessed with the dark side of history, more specifically, the Victorian
era. Primarily singing songs about
Victorian era issues like “Rats” and “Mama Was an Opium Smoker,” Rasputina gets
super nerd cred for composing awesome songs about everything she learned in
history class. Rasputina is
largely credited with influencing trends in the Victorian music revival and
Steampunk movements.
#10 Epoxies.
God I love the 80s. Geek
culture was high and thriving, and nobody seemed to notice or care…. Except for
the Epoxies, a self-proclaimed “robot garage rock” band who continuously strive
hard to celebrate everything awesomely geeky about the 80s. Sporting ridiculously cool do-it-yourself
costumes and featuring a lovely leading lady, Roxy Epoxy, the Epoxies composed
heard-hitting new wave punk songs that poked fun at cold war issues and the
atomic bomb.
#9 Rush. Famous Canadian rock band Rush was singing about science
fiction and fantasy long before most of us were born. With killer philosophically inspired lyrics as well as
complex musical compositions, Rush is more than just a great nerd band, they
are a GREAT BAND period. Ernest
Cline seems to think so too. Rush’s
album 2112 was John Halliday’s favorite album in Ready Player One, and was
highly interwoven into the plot of the book.
#8 Daft Punk.
They produced the music for TRON, need I say more. Daft Punk has long been an integrated force
in geek culture and music. Their
songs are transcendent, fun, and super catchy. Plus, they make awesome music videos that feature robots,
anime, and more robots.
Check out “Around the World” and “Technologic” for a good taste of Daft
Punk’s greatness.
#7 MC Lars.
MC Lars is like the Robin to MC Frontalot’s Batman. A younger, but no less nerdy rapper, MC
Lars has a long portfolio of rap tracks about geekdom. With an extended vocabulary in the geek
vernacular, MC Lars not only raps about gaming and robots, he also incorporates
slices of literature into his songs as well with songs like “Rapbeth” (a
reference to Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’) and “Mr. Raven” (a song evoking Poe’s
eponymous poem).
#6 Flight of the Conchords.
The self-proclaimed “almost award-winning fourth-most-popular folk duo
in New Zealand,” Flight of the Conchords stands high on this list as being one
of the nerdiest bands of all time.
With their quirky humor and geek-like obsession and ability to imitate
almost any musical genre imaginable, Flight of the Conchords have created
eclectic masterpieces such as “Robots,” “Bowie,” and “Hiphopopotamus vs.
Rhymnoceros.”
#5 Powerglove.
Who among you is old enough to remember the Nintendo Power Glove? Named after a Nintendo controller
accessory, Powerglove is an instrumental melodic metal band that plays covers
of your favorite video games. They
perform amazing covers of everything from Mega Man, Final Fantasy, Mortal
Kombat, to Pokeman. They
even have expanded their regimen to include theme songs from popular 80s TV
shows like Inspector Gadget.
#4 MC Frontalot.
I don’t know how he does it, but somehow MC Frontalot makes receding hairlines
and power ties look cool. Credited
as the first rapper to coin the phrase of ‘nerdcore’ in hip-hop, MC Frontalot
attacks geek issues like gaming, arcades, space prostitutes, and blogging with
gusto and bravisimo. He is also
heavily featured in the film Nerdcore Rising, a documentary about the rise of
the nerdcore rap genre.
#3 I Fight Dragons.
This is probably the most poppy group on this list, but nevertheless, I
Fight Dragons’ place in the Top Nerdiest Bands of All Time is well
deserved. Plus, they have the word
‘dragon’ in their name. I Fight
Dragons not only plays cool covers of Nintendo songs like “I Fight Ganon,” but
they also often feature electronic sounds in their music from Gameboys and
Nintendo game consoles (which cements this band’s place high on the list even
more). Plus, did I mention that
they have the word ‘dragon’ in their name?
#2 Weird Al Yankovich.
Weird Al Yankovich is the godfather of nerd music. The man plays an accordion for crying
out loud. Known for his polkas and
insanely hilarious parodies of popular songs, Weird Al has continuously
delivered a geeky spin to the world’s most popular music for decades. My two favorite Weird Al songs of all
time are most definitely “All About the Pentiums” and “The Saga Begins.”
#1 Devo.
Often seen clad in spacesuits, yellow jumpsuits, flower pot hats…. Or whatever
else they could find in their grandfather’s basement, Devo is by far the
nerdiest band of all time. Named
after the concept of ‘de-evolution,’
Devo purposefully created catchy and sarcastic songs poking fun at the
regression of the human race. They
also were famous for making sexually implicit songs like “Whip it” and
“Fresh.” With their unforgiving
social commentary and knack for the absurd, Devo was way ahead of their time,
and never got the credit and popularity they so largely deserved. Here’s to you, Devo! We are not worthy.
Honorable mentions: The Aquabats, Dream Team Laser Beam, Bare
Naked Ladies, Presidents of the United States of America, and Phish.
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