Comedian, musician, and Mystery Science Theater 3000 host Jonah Ray had the idea to take some of “Weird Al” Yankovic‘s best-known parody songs, use only the lyrics and write new melodies for them. He brought in Cody Votolato from Blood Brothers (his bandmate in Pressers) to play guitar and got Zac Carper from FIDLAR to produce. The result is an EP called You Can’t Call Me Al with “Amish Paradise” and “Eat It” turned into poppy punk, as have Weird Al’s genre parodies “Dare to Be Stupid” (Devo) and “Frank’s 2000″ TV” (R.E.M.) Also on the EP is a “new wave” version of the “Reptilicus” rap from MST3K. Jonah released rough mixes on Bandcamp last year but they’re now getting a vinyl release via Asian Man on August 9. You can watch the video for “Amish Paradise” below.
The EP is pressed on black vinyl with one side etched, and a limited run of 500. There are also pre-order bundles with a t-shirt designed by Jay Howell who did the design for Bob’s Burgers.
Meanwhile, Weird Al himself is on tour with an orchestra now for the “Strings Attached” tour. He stops in NYC on Saturday (7/20) for a show at Forest Hills Stadium, and tickets are still on sale.
