On the whole Star Wars music is a mixed bag. Some of it is OK and some of it just makes you want to cringe. I’ve tried to steer clear of most of it but as a music lover I thought I ought to check this out.
So, in the red corner we have Darth Elvis from Aberdeen. In the blue corner are Anchorhead who between them are from the UK and Australia. Our referee in this bout is Jay Laga’aia. Before anything could happen though Anchorhead had to soundcheck. I’m not sure what some people were expecting but the loud squealing put a few people off and they left the theatre so it was left to the rest of us to enjoy.
First up was Darth Elvis. So imagine Elvis Presley in his white jewelled Vegas outfit with a Jedi robe and replica Anakin glove. He really is Elvis and treats us to “That’s alright Jabba” which really rocks and there is some applause for this reworking of the classic Elvis tune. We then get an a capella version of “You ain’t nothing but a Nerf Herder” which includes the great line “You ain’t never caught a womp rat and you ain’t no friend of mine.” How cool.
For a finale we get “Viva Mos Eisley”. I’m sure you could draw parallels between Mos Eisley and Las Vegas. Both wretched hives of scum and villainy? The crowd really enjoy this and then it’s over to the blue corner.
Have you heard of the rock opera Tommy by the Who? Anchorhead perform their thrash metal opera of Episode IV called appropriately Darth Metal. They present an interesting line up. All dressed in white jacketed dinner suits we have Darth Vader on drums with Boba Fett and a Stormtrooper on guitar. Their singer also similarly attired but with a jedi robe over the top.
An interesting juxtoposition when they start to play. These guys RAWK! And the kids love it. Towards the end they are waving their lightsabers and hands are in the air. The singer has quite clearly gone to the Napalm Death school of vocalisation. Listen to their songs and you will get the idea.
The guitars are great with some really good playing of all our favourite tunes from A New Hope and key lines from the singer.
Jay has now got clear sinuses so it’s time for the voting by that tried and tested method, noise. It’s quite clear who won but both performers were (in my opinion) excellent. Anchorhead got the coveted Figrin Da’an trophy and they would have got to play us out had the battle not over run.
I’ve taken a step into a bigger world. Some Star Wars music can be really good.
