Oingo Boingo!

[germicide]

What a great quarky band! I've been listening to only a lad (reissue) all day. Any other fans out there?

[Predot listener]

Why yes. In fact, I even got my mom liking them back in the day.

[sonicpharmacist]

Yeah, they were great. I was lucky enough to see them a few times too.

[DaHood]

Love Oingo Boingo. Quirky, sure but there is some serious quality music going on there. I especially love the horn hooks.

[germicide]

Yeah, they were great. I was lucky enough to see them a few times too.

God, what was that like? Awesome I bet.

[skidminix]

I LOOOOOVE Oingo Boingo. Especially through Good For Your Soul, although they still had moments of brilliance afterward (personally, I loved the Boingo album).

[Chespo]

They were my soundtrack when I was 16; in fact, I think I'll change my sig right now to their lyric that's the perfect snapshot of teenage me. While many people discovered them at Dead Man's Party, that's when I wrote them off as too tame because Danny stopped screaming on that album. They didn't stick with me into adulthood, but I still enjoy listening to those old albums on occasion. I've never seen them live; only their appearance in URGH! A Music War doing "Ain't This the Life".

Ever seen Forbidden Zone?

[sonicpharmacist]

Here's a cool video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTRd1a5MVMw) of Oingo Boingo on the Gong Show. Danny's brother is the dude with the rocket, but you can see Danny if you look closely during the scoring, standing next to rocketdude.

God, what was that like? Awesome I bet.

Yeah, they were fantastic live...tons of energy.

[kurt44]

I used to catch their Halloween shows at Irvine Meadows back in the Day!

[frizgolf]

I loved the scene where they were playing a frat party in Back To School.

[Breeze]

Quirky, sure but there is some serious quality music going on there.
No accident that Elfman went on to many composing gigs.

[Breeze]

I loved the scene where they were playing a frat party in Back To School.
Two "Back To School" references in the same day?
http://www.movieactors.com/freezeframes510/BackToSchool109.jpeg
I would get be tempted to get physical about that. But I never get physical. I just get upset... and when I get upset, Lou gets physical ...

[frizgolf]

Two "Back To School" references in the same day?
http://www.movieactors.com/freezeframes510/BackToSchool109.jpeg
I would get be tempted to get physical about that. But I never get physical. I just get upset... and when I get upset, Lou gets physical ...

Glad you're paying attention!

I'm a lover, not a fighter.

[Breeze]

I'm a lover, not a fighter.
You're a Melon!

[Chespo]

At some point in the '83-'84 vicinity there was a competitive TV show where people lip-synced to their favorite songs. On one episode, a group of punk kids did "Who Do You Want To Be" and "Grey Matter"; that's how I discovered Oingo Boingo.

[sonicpharmacist]

I used to catch their Halloween shows at Irvine Meadows back in the Day!

Always wanted to go to one of the Halloween Irvine shows. Always had to settle for the Open Air Amphitheater at San Diego State, which is/was a great venue in its own right.

[Chespo]

Oh, and their cover of "You Really Got Me" is up there with Devo's "Satisfaction" as one of the great teardown/rebuilds. That's how covers ought to be done.

[indigobunting]

Big fan here, sort of. I lived in Hermosa Beach with my dad in the 80's. I remember in about 85 or so, I watched The Forbbidon Zone a freakin' million times because of this naked princess......



NSFW IMAGE LINK:

http://www.dvdrama.com/imagescrit2/f/o/r/forbiddenzonepic02.jpg

[Jumpman]

I loved the scene where they were playing a frat party in Back To School.

That's where I was introduced to Oingo Boingo. Good Stuff.

[jvk]

You're a Melon!What's a hot tub without Bubbles? Bubbles, get over here.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/204/458583320_bf5ab5c722_m.jpg

[Grover]

I didn't know it was Oingo Boingo at the time, but I absolutely loved the closing credits song in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High", Goodbye, Goodbye. It wasn't until I believe MTV was showing the US festival that I heard it again. My thought that this was awsome, how come we don't get this music in Central Ohio? Fast forward to 1986, I'm stationed in Pensacola and somebody plays Only a Lad and Who do you want to be, At that point I was completely sold.

The Elf-Man is a Fucking Genius!

[jvk]

Was Oingo Boingo simply a Danny Elfman vehicle like NIN and Trent Reznor?

[skidminix]

Was Oingo Boingo simply a Danny Elfman vehicle like NIN and Trent Reznor?

I would have to say a qualified "yes" - he pretty much exclusively is credited for writing the music and lyrics. But... Steve Bartek, the lead guitarist, did most of the arranging - in fact, he still does some arranging with Elfman's scoring work. Plus, he's a super fabulous musician (and here's a fun but little known fact: as a teenager, Steve Bartek was an early member of/arranger for Strawberry Alarm Clock). The other musicians in Oingo Boingo were always pretty amazing, too. Danny's solo album "So-Lo" - could easily be passed off as an Oingo Boingo album, except that without all the live musicians it sometimes falls a little flat (though it contains a few of my all-time favorite Elfman tunes).