Inexplicable Music Review: The Ting Tings, perfect for summer consumption.

I've previously established that I don't have much musical taste, between what I consider "cool" music and because I'm a 26-year-old guy that likes Ke$ha. (So sue me! There is just something so raw and filthy about her that somehow also makes her attractive. I can't properly explain it.)

Anyway, one band I'm into that is perfect for summer consumption remains The Ting Tings. You've probably heard a lot of them recently - The above music video for "Great DJ" is used in at least one commercial, for some Garner Fruitis shampoo, and it is frequently used as bumper music for shows. (You can thank me later for finally identifying it for you.)

Basically, I'm very much into accessible, listenable techno, and The Ting Tings seem to be the latest permutation of it. This genre started with some of the 1980s hip-hop beats, and gave way to early to late 1990s "big beat" techno like The Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim. The audience for both bands eventually decayed, but acts like Daft Punk still remain pretty popular. Now, I think you can clearly hear that techno kind of influence in the drums of The Ting Tings and the production value of most Kanye songs.

There are a couple other factors that certainly help The Ting Tings' success:

- The female vocalist, Katie White, is cute as heck. She's clearly hot, but she is jussttt a bit thick and chesty, which makes her seem more "normal" than most pop sensations like Katy Perry. Sure, she styles her hair over her eyes like she is a bit emo, but her hair is gorgeous and in general, she looks pouty and dreamy. I've joked in the past that I'd like to marry her, since she's roughly my age, and I'm only half kidding. (Watch, someone will produce a picture of her smoking, like they did with Piper Perabo, and totally kill my dreams.)

- All of their music videos are pretty solid. As my friend Michael noted about the one up there, it probably cost about $100 to make. It's just them making the same dance move throughout the video as the colors throb behind them. However, because it's so simple, and because the music and lyrics seems to sync with the video, I'm a big fan. There isn't a lot of innovation going on in music videos today, as most bands are content to just be filmed singing, so I like anything off the beaten path.

Similarly, the band's other videos are examples of this minimalist but neat, eye-catching style:


- I don't think The Ting Tings take themselves too seriously, which is important in my book. Like the DJ behind Girl Talk, they just seem content to make some good, catchy music. They're also fine doing goofy stuff, like singing the "Happy Birthday" song on Yo Gabba Gabba. This adds to my impression that Katie White is a sweet girl I can take home, as opposed to a nasty sex freak. (That's what Ke$ha is there for, anyway.)

- This final reason is kind of silly, but I like that the male lead of The Ting Tings, Jules De Martino, looks like one of my favorite wrestlers, Christian Cage. Good for them both! I also have no idea if Jules is straight or gay, but hey, whatever makes him happy and producing hit records make me happy.