Major Lazer and Eric Wareheim

Shouts to Graphite North for his 'major LOLZ' in the direction of Major Lazer video, which I'm currently still trying to kick into a category, but what can you expect when Diplo and Switch hook up. Not sure how I missed out on this when they first collaborated and released their debut album 'Guns don't kill people... lazers do' in June earlier this year, but as far as I can tell/make up it was a conspiracy to shush out the delightful bizarreness.

As you can see from the picture opposite, Major Lazer is more of an animated character - a one-armed Jamaican commando (limb lost in the great zombie war of '84) who spends his time slaying the cast of ghouls from Buffy aided by a rocket-powered hoverboard (very Back To The Future II).

The partnership also brings together Downtown Records and Diplo's Mad Decent, becoming their first joint release. Recorded in Jamaica, their debut included Nina Sky, Mr Vegas, Mr Lex, Santigold and more with ragga, reggae, dancehall, dub, electro, booty, techno, trip-hop... and I've no doubt they'll continue to suck in other genres along the way as they progress.

Part of the bizarre feel also comes from their work with Eric Wareheim to produce the two cartoonesque videos for 'Pon de Floor' feat Vybz Kartel (embedding disabled) and 'Keep it Going Louder' feat. Nina Sky and Ricky Blaze:


For some people, that's a line-up of exes. Music is just ever too God's Kitchen for me to not start haplessly laying into it, but let's enjoy it for how it works with the video and start thinking about who he should do a video for next... Mariah Carey, the Sugababes - I want to see more melted faces.

Now, while I can't show the better of the two songs, 'Pon de Floor', you'll hopefully have gone, checked it out and returned for more mind-crushing insights; altogether this isn't music to last the generations, but it is the kind of instant gratification, non self-obsessed, tongue in cheek tunes and visuals we can all do with at least 32 times a year. If you didn't discover it the first time, have a quick mind wank with it just now.