5.0
The Lonely Island: Turtleneck And Chain Review
Made up of SNL Cast Members/Writers Andy Samburg, Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer, The Lonely Island’s first album was one of 2009′s biggest surprises. Not only were the lyrics hilarious, but the music was actually good, with well produced beats and featuring some high profile music stars that weren’t afraid to make fools of themselves for the sake of a few laughs.
The boys are back with their latest album ‘Turtleneck and Chain’ and while this album doesn’t have as many memorable tracks as the first, it’s still provides plenty of laughs for the fans.
Here’s the track breakdown (minus the skits):
- We’re Back! – A loud kick-ass hardcore rap intro. They put a twist on the usual rap intro – usually about having huge balls and slammin’ bitches – and instead rap about having tiny, messed up dicks. It’s irreverent, disgusting, and very funny.
- Mama – A love song to mothers everywhere… until Andy’s Mum interrupts the recording. Again, quite funny.
- I Just Had Sex (feat. Akon) – The first single from the album. It’s the most over-produced song on the album, but for very good reason. It sounds like every pop song from the last 10 years, but it’s about telling everyone you just got laid. Sure to be a popular post-coital song among young men.
- Jack Sparrow (feat. Michael Bolton) – Even though the song is called Jack Sparrow, I think the least you know about this song going in the funnier it will be. Let’s just say, Michael Bolton loves movies. It’s one of my favourites.
- Attracted To Us (feat. Beck) – I don’t know about this song. It’s catchy, but not especially funny, and Beck doesn’t get to do a whole lot. It’s my least favourite on the album.
- Rocky - A love letter to both Rocky and The Fresh Prince. Andy tells the story of how he fought Rocky and Rocky kicked his ass. Dark, disturbing and hilarious.
- Turtleneck And Chain (feat. Snoop Dogg) – The title says it all. It’s amazing how many ways they found to say ‘Turtleneck and Chain’ in 2 minutes and 44 seconds. It’s also the best thing Snoop Dogg has done in years.
- Shy Ronnie 2: Ronnie And Clyde (feat. Rihanna) – Rihanna and Shy Ronnie rob a bank. Ronnie lives up to his name. Funny.
- Trouble On Dookie Island – From this track onwards the album is very hit or miss. This song is about a couple of guys who rob a store and then run from the cops… and shit their pants. The rhymes are great and the beat is awesome but, apart from a couple of lines towards the end, it’s not very funny.
- Motherlover (feat. Justin Timberlake) – A sequel to Dick in a Box, this is a definite hit. Well produced, and highly amusing. Another favourite.
- The Creep (feat. John Waters and Nicki Minaj) - Miss. This track isn’t memorable at all. It’s not funny and I’ll skip it if I ever hear it pop up on my iPod.
- Threw It On The Ground – This one is somewhere between hit and miss. It’s most reminiscent of Boombox from the last album, a song that slowly grew on me the more I listened to it, which may just happen with this track.
- Japan - I like this one a lot. A song that makes fun of music labels paying to send bands around the world for no reason at all and how they abuse the privilege in the dumbest ways. Very sharp.
- After Party (feat. Santigold) – Another one that isn’t terribly funny, but it does have it’s moments of genius and the chorus is catchy as hell. It’s good.
- No Homo – A song about dudes being afraid to compliment each other, but of course, the guys take it too far until it becomes laughably stupid. Another solid track.
There are a few skits on the album that make fun of the usual rap album tropes, they start off big and usually end is something disturbing, but they add nothing to the experience.
As a whole, Turtleneck and Chain is another good album from The Lonely Island, but I like the first a little more. If you weren’t a fan of that first album then you won’t like this one, but it should please fans. Highly recommended.
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