In the mid Á¢€Ëœ80s, Dead Milkmen were a college radio programmerÁ¢€™s wet dream. They were smart, snotty, and loud at a time when most bands were polished and pre-recorded. They made fun of anyone and everyone. They even took a shot at Stevie Ray Vaughn once, calling him a Á¢€Å“cheesy Texas motherfucker.Á¢€ (As tempting as it is to pass judgment on the band for making such a claim, it appears that time has already done that on our behalf.)
It was therefore only a matter of time before Dead Milkmen set their sights on the dance-oriented bands that were stealing their college radio glory. And what better way to defeat your enemy than by singing his song: Á¢€Å“Instant Club Hit (YouÁ¢€™ll Dance to Anything)Á¢€ (download), from the bandÁ¢€™s 1987 album Bucky Fellini, is completely programmed — save for one well-timed outburst on guitar — and in fact it appears they deliberately used machines that were already outdated, in order to prove their point about the musicÁ¢€™s disposability. Depeche Mode, Siouxsie & the Banshees, the Smiths, Public Image Ltd. and Book of Love — all of whom, curiously, will be the subject of future White Label Friday features — suffer the MilkmenÁ¢€™s wrath, along with the Á¢€Å“danceteria typesÁ¢€ who worshiped them. You want to put an indelible time stamp on your music? Use a word like Á¢€Ëœdanceteria.Á¢€™
The club DJs, of course, loved Á¢€Å“Instant Club Hit.Á¢€ Even the ones with 80 pounds of makeup on their art school skin thought it was funny. I mean, how do you not love a song that tells the people dancing to it that theyÁ¢€™re all a bunch of art fags?
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