MC Frontalot's Final Boss: nerdcore par excellence

MC Frontalot's new nerdcore album, Final Boss, is a perfect, catchy collection of raps and sketches about video-games, Japanese manga fandom, voting machines, and other important subjects. Of especial note is a completely, convulsively hilarious sketch with Wil Wheaton about Wil and Frontalot's respective career-choices. The CD's out in a month or so, but if you pre-order it now, you get immediate delivery of the CD in MP3 form, with a lyrics sheet and hi-rez versions of the art.

Now these are lyrics:

I’ve got a new dance called The Margaret Thatcher.
It’ll get in your pants, you’d better call the dispatche
r of deliverers of increased pants awesomeness.
Get the awesomest pants they offer.
Preposterous shoes are also required for the moves,
although sensible footwear or barefoot behooves
and all attire’s optional.
You only ever do it when there’s nobody watching you.

Do it. Do The Margaret Thatcher.
Just do it. Do The Margaret Thatcher, y’all.

Here’s a little something for the
wallflowers in the room,
all my people at the party for whom
the dance don’t come natural.
Enhance your stature. Fall
into the routine they call
The Margaret Thatcher, y’all.

Do The Margaret Thatcher.
Do The Margaret Thatcher, y’all.

Step One:
Wiggle, wobble, wriggle,
coddle your young,
intensify your ennui,
then before you get done,
put your left foot over to the left if you dare,
then pretend you got scared,
then point at your hair.

MC Frontalot's Final Boss (Thanks, Quinn!)

• [error404]

  I was onboard until the mention of Thatcher.

  It’s a knee jerk reaction to the woman who tried to annihilate society.

  evil evil evil.

• [MrScience]

  I take a lot of photos at PAX… and MC Frontalot is my favorite to photograph! Though the Thickets gave him a run for his money this year in theatrics.

  @1: Here’s a few pics I snapped of MC Frontalot and Coulton singing together: http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=mcfrontalot%20coulton&w=86326874%40N00&m=tags

  One of my favorites of the MC: http://www.flickr.com/photos/darkphibre/1264747668/in/set-72157601743671789/

• [Anonymous]

  I think Frontalot is a good rapper, even though he sounds like he’s “doing” a black guy “doing” a white guy (lands on the R’s a lot).

  But a big turnoff for me (especially on “Thatcher”) is that the background music often sounds like the cheesy imitation hip-hop you hear on fake-rap novelty songs like “The Super Bowl Shuffle” or “Rappin’ Rodney.”

  “Socks On” is definitely loads better than “Thatcher” musically, and maybe lyrically, and is probably about as close to actual hip-hop as the album gets.

  And yeah, the skits are hilarious, especially the Wil Wheaton one. The world definitely needs more Shellfishcore hip-hop!

• [Category]

  @13 – Considering the “evil” Thatcher, the combo of “working peoples” political leaders Bush and Blair have done a lot more destruction than she ever could.

  Back on topic – Frontalot is ok – quite dig some of his music, so might have to buy this. Still gotta see Nerdcore Rising, but I’m more interested in the documentary “Nerdcore For Life”, when that finally finishes the film festival circuit.

• [cholling]

  I don’t understand… are Boingers more inclined to think bad music is good if the lyrics are about video games, robots, or ’80s pop culture?

• [Fletcherism]

  As far as Nerdcore…

  MC CHRIS FTW!!

  Just saying zahl….

• [Joel Johnson]

  I just caught a Boing Boing nod in Scare Goats. Back atcha, Front.

• [sammich]

  error404 @23 – my guess is not from the north of england

• [mamarox]

  Drat, it doesn’t appear to have my favorite
  Frontalot song; the great ode to bridge engineering “Floating Bridge.”

  Gotta get it, though … not great flow, but great fun.

• [Tamu]

  A few people have mentioned Scott Campbell’s artwork. Just a little link love for y’all.

• [valtz]

  OMG!!!! (to employ the online vernacular–always awkward for us 40-somethings, geeks like me still barely know what a browser is….)

  This guy’s an old student of mine from Berkeley High School! I loved this kid and now lookit this!

  Guess I have to write to him–

• [hassan-i-sabbah]

  The only time I want to hear that bitch named in song in when she is dead..Evil Fucking Vampiric Shit of an excuse for humanity.Vile venal cow and her poxed greed culture she spawned.
  Blair and chums are merely the bitter fruit of her evil poisoned seed.
  (rant over)

• [SamF]

  @#3: I think that’s kind of the point of the song. Unless I’m missing something. The cryptozoology guy doesn’t believe in scare goats because they ARE real. All the creatures he believes in are the mythical ones.

  @#15: Just like emo kids love to hear people sing about cutting themselves and country music fans like to hear people sing about beer and pickup trucks, us nerds like to hear songs about the things we love. Not all boingers are nerds, though, so it’s understandable that not everyone’s going to “get it”.

  Me, I like the Front. He’s got some great lyrics, and I actually like his unique flow. I may just have to pick this up.

• [Scarybug]

  Fret not dear Thatcher haters. The last lyric in the song calls her a “villainous crone”.

  “Don’t retract unless you’re starting a move,
  and don’t begin a motion unless you follow it through,
  and don’t do anything I wouldn’t condone
  except a dance named after a villainous crone.”

  RTFL, next time ;P

• [Daemon]

  Hmm. I notice he’s got a collaberation with Jonathan Coulton in there. Cool.

  Even though I dislike rap in general (with a handfull of specific exceptions, such as Frontalot’s own Pitch Dark), a Coulton collaberation would definately be worth checking it.

• [hassan-i-sabbah]

  Or Scotland. These feeling run deep.

• [Various Cool dot Com]

  You all should check out Deltron 3030. Great production with space and tech lyrics!

• [romulusnr]

  Say a little prayer for Mr. Awesome Pants?

• [serth]

  I am squinting at the sig on the cover and yes, that is Scott C !!

• [thebelgianpanda]

  I don’t understand the comments related to Frontalot being a ‘bad’ rapper. I agree he doesn’t sound like mainstream rappers, but does that make him bad? Roland Kirk didn’t sound like Charlie Parker, Stravinsky didn’t sound like Rachmaninov, Nirvana didn’t sound like Metallica; and though is analogy is flawed since all of the examples have had their greatness recognized, it is indicative of what I’m trying to say.

  No, front is not Tupac, Eminem, or even Weird Al, he’s front. Some of the sounds and samples are going to sound abrasive to a lot of people–the first time I heard Love Supreme, I had no friggan clue what I was listening to, but it eventually became one of my most beloved albums. Front isn’t for everybody, not even every nerd, but there is nothing ‘bad’ about his tunes, just different.

  Now let us all sing along: Here’s a new trick Mr. Knox, socks on chicks, chicks on fox…

• [Davin]

  The art looks like Scott Campbell’s work.

• [themiddleroad]

  Poor flow. Lame “I’m so clever” word choice. B-grade tunes and beats. I love the concept of nerdcore and want it to work, but the practitioners fail to impress me. MC 900 Ft Jesus rocks. Frontalot reeks. There’s plenty of good thoughtful rap available, or at least pretty good.

• [DeWynken]

  My 4 year old girl Rowan absolutely gushed on the funny kitty with the gun.

• [Scarybug]

  I got the album early at PAX. The whole thing is most excellent. Better than his last two albums, I’d say.

  But Scare Goats are real! My friend had them in his farm in Oregeon, WI. TELL THE PEOPLE!

• [themiddleroad]

  I love the art. Too bad he’s an awful rapper.

• [cosmicautumn]

  I think Nerdcore Rising is the most endearing profile of a musical artist I’ve ever seen. Despite the fact that his style of music isn’t my favorite, I’ll probably buy this just to support someone so enthusiastic and dedicated to his fans.

• [Jason Scott]

  Video for “Wallflowers”:

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74PgEHUh-5Q&fmt=18

  Frontalot’s running a contest for the best fan-made video, too.

• [MelvinHoek]

  Sounds a lot like Paul Barman. But not as technically awesome.

• [Steve Stair]

  If you think *those* lyrics are good, check out “Socks On” on the same album. There needs to be more Dr. Seuss inspired music.

• [Itsumishi]

  @4 themiddleroad.

  I’m with you. The ‘Do It’ samples are also painful.

  This is the one case where I would have been more inclined to purchase the album before hearing the music. Enjoyed reading the lyrics and love that artwork, so thanks but no thanks.

• [error404]

  @14

  Where are you from just out of interest?

• [Teresa Nielsen Hayden / Moderator]

  Cholling @15, I believe they base their judgement on whether or not they enjoyed listening to it.

• [sirspocksalot]

  I hope for his next album Front does a song about that cad Boss Tweed and his dastardly confederates at Tammany Hall! It’s about time they were taken down a peg or two!

  (I love ya Front, but…Margaret Thatcher? Seriously? You’re like thirty years late to that party!)

• [LeSinge]

  $17.23 after tax and shipping. That’s a spicy meatball. Oh well. In for one.
  @4 and @8, to each his (or her) own I guess. I think he’s pretty good.

• [Xenu]

  MC Frontalot’s show was easily one of my favorite concerts.

  No, he’s not a good rapper. But what he lacks in flow he makes up for in content.

• [mmbb]

  “copyfight” how?
  cory, it’s your tag and you can use it as you see fit, but what does it mean?

• [kento]

  As a huge Flight and Psychonauts enthusiast, I was excited to see the art of Scott Campbell!