The Prettiots' songs are winsome and clever, but most of all they're honest and funny. Goodness knows pop music needs some clever fun.
The three women in The Prettiots — Kay Kasparhauser on ukulele and lead vocals, Rachel Trachtenburg from the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players on drums, and bassist Lulu Prat — share their love of everything from Law & Order to old-school girl groups like the Shangri-Las. Their song "Stabler," performed here, is based on Kasparhauser's infatuation with the Law & Order character Elliot Stabler.
"Boys (I Dated In High School)" is the Prettiots tune that first charmed me, thanks mainly to the perfect portrait its brainy rhymes paint:
Martin, that was your name
I met you on the 1 train
You were super duper duper hot
On the 1 train
You said you were a painter
Mostly you were a waiter
A stoner and a skater
So I had to say later,
These are the boys that I dated in high school
I thought they were so nice
And I thought they were so cool
These are the boys that I dated in high school
They weren't very nice
And they weren't very cool
It's the sort of music you'll either adore or abhor; it's hard to be neutral and you'll know it quickly. For me, their appearance at the Tiny Desk totally made my day.
Set List
Credits
Producers: Bob Boilen, Maggie Starbard; Audio Engineer: Brian Jarboe; Editor: Morgan Walker; Videographers: Maggie Starbard, Morgan McCloy; Assistant Producer: Michaela Gugliotta; photo by Morgan McCloy/NPR
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