FOTI #46: Abracabdralifornia

Fortnight on the Internets is going mega vi!

On this episode, we’re joined by two amazing interviewees: Matt Farley, the most prolific man on Spotify and iTunes, and Erin Chack, a rising star at Buzzfeed.

If you subscribe or become a Liker on Facebook, you’ll be able to get to new episodes faster than everyone else. You’d also be wise to follow us on our @FOTIpod Twitter account, where we often have fun interactions with the people and sites we talk about on the show…

Internet Report Card

#1. Abracadabralifornia

Comedian Jon Daly’s hilarious, vicious RHCP parody was released with a pitch-perfect website ahead of the Super Bowl halftime show. Click here to listen.

#2. Casino’s Law

Savannah personal injury lawyer Jamie Casino blew minds with this totally epic, totally metal advertisement that was hands down better than any of the national ads.

 #3. Set Yourself Free

This unofficial Australian PSA (aka not seemingly government endorsed) directed by Henry Inglis and Aaron McCann shows the dangers of skipping school (or maybe even dropping out before you fully learn to read?) in an EXPLOSIVE manner.

Matt Farley

 
 

Matt Farley, the mastermind of Motern Media and its 50+ musical artists, joins us for a very nice chat. He’s quickly gained viral fame for posting over 14,000 songs online, covering virtually every topic known to humankind! From the cavalcade of random 2-minute tunes he’s posted relentlessly online for the past six years, he’s been able to create a sustainable revenue stream from online listens and downloads that started out as a few hundred bucks a month and has gradually grown growing to a decent income ($23k last year!). Motern Media bands include Papa Razzi and the Photogs, a band that’s posted hundreds of amusing songs about famous people ranging from Audrina Partridge to Kurt Vonnegut to Saint Augustine of Hippo; The Prom Song Singers, who have a personalized plea for any girl or boy you’d like to ask to the prom; The Paranormal Song Warrior, who sings about every X-Files topic imaginable; and the Toilet Bowl Cleaners, who sing songs about poop. And pretty much all these bands are just him, a keyboard and his marvelous brain.

To learn more about Matt’s music — and the movies he’s done, which we ran out of time to discuss, but are really quite enjoyable, especially 2013’s Local Legends — check out his website.

Here’s a glorious 12-hour sampling of Farley’s greatest hits, including songs by his “real” band, Moes Haven. Many of them are delightfully random, but many are also randomly delightful. Enjoy — we did!

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Erin Chack

Friend of the podcast and rising Buzzfeed stah Erin Chack joins us to talk about many wonderful things including:

• What it’s really like to work at Buzzfeed
• Her favorite Buzzfeed list of all time: Life in Your Twenties vs. Life as a Fetus
• The rising popularity of Buzzfeed’s quizzes (like this 90s rock one where Shirley Manson didn’t get herself)
• Her thoughts on Buzzfeed haters
• Some of the great mid- and long-form pieces that the site’s been publishing lately, including:
  • Why I Stay Closeted in Asia
  • What Does Pussy Riot Mean Now
  • Going Back to College Felt (Almost) as Hard as Fighting Cancer <— By Erin! Must read!
• The meaning of the phrase “mega vi”
• Are people at Buzzfeed really that positive or are they secretly as mean as everyone else?

Having met Erin, you must now follow her every move and worship her as we do!

Shoutout to the Likers!

FOTI Olympics correspondent Jeni Sue continued to whet our appetite for her upcoming full segment on the Sochi Winter Olympics next fortnight, by posting a clip from the Opening Ceremony of the all-male Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs police choir performing a rousing rendition of “Get Lucky.” 

These amazing people helped make our show possible:

• Liker C. Dave was the first to point us to Jon Daly’s “Abracadabralifornia.”
• Likers Nate M. and Zach W. simultaneously reached out the morning after the Super Bowl about “Casino’s Law,” the best/worst local Super Bowl commercial the world has ever seen.
• Liker DB sent us the genius of “Set Yourself Free.
• Likers C. Dave and Jess L. both introduced us to our musical guest and 2nd segment host, Spotify genius Matt Farley.

And now for our top Likers of the Fortnight!

#5. Liker Laura T. made sure J. Sue didn’t miss Deadspin’s travel advisory about how each and every hotel room in Sochi is lacking in some significant manner, whether it’s the inability to flush toilet paper down the TOILET, or missing shower curtains and lightbulbs.

#4. Liker Chaia M. shared two great comments on the video we posted of A Conference Call in Real Life, writing: “I am not even lying, at least three of the things in this video happened to me on a conference call less than an hour after I watched it.”

#3. Liker TJ B. opened our eyes to the world of Minecraft convention MINECON, sharing with us the 8 minute video compilation he found called A Minecraft Convention is as Awkward as You Think.  Watch out Brony convention!  You’ve got some really weird and uncomfortable competition.

#2. Liker Jeff H. scoured the Comments section of Deadspin post about the batshit crazy Georgia lawyer local Super Bowl ad and found yet another absolutely bonkers local ad – a predecessor from 2011 – featuring a very white and 40-something Intellectual Property lawyer breathlessly and tone deafly rapping up a storm, produced by Anarchy Studios in Houston.  Apparently, this has been a thing for a while way down in Dixie?

And our Liker of the Fortnight is Liker DB!  Not only for this fortnight’s contribution of the “Set Yourself Free” video, but for being one of our loudest evangelists in general.  

He’s also an outstanding writer about movies and TV, and the go-to source for knowledge on Oscar season, so now is a great time to check out his blog: I Am DB.

Thanks to Matt Farley and Erin Chack!
Our theme song is by Snowplows.
Cover art by Vicious Rumors.