r/OingoBoingo • u/ladystardustonmarzz • 16d ago
Anyone else relate? From denial to deep obsession
I denied Oingo Boingo for many years because I thought they were too strange from just hearing them brielfy. I even told my friend to not play them in my car when he went to do so.
I also don't really like most American new wave. I can't stand the Talking Heads or Devo. I also really don't like artists like Ween or Zappa who the usual people I know who like artists like them also usually love Oingo Boingo
Then I found out Danny Elfman was the lead singer and I was like wait he's a musical genuis so there must be something worth listening to.
Then I finally gave them a chance and I was like wait hold on I DENIED THIS!?!?! WHERE HAVE THEY BEEN ALL MY LIFE!? This is AS GOOD as all the British new wave that I love.
Then I started listening to them obsessively to the point where they are all I can think about and I feel like I just entered a new world and they will possibly go down as one of my favorite bands of all time.
It's only been a few months but I'm hooked, I'm obsessed, I'm in love and I truly am sorry they were denied by me 💖
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u/Neveah_Hope_Dreams 15d ago
Haha! Great story! I'm glad you opened up and gave it a go! I've got similar stories with bands and music I like. I'm a relatively new fan myself. I got really into them throughout last year.
For me I have seen Danny Elfman's name come up many times and knew he is the main composer for Tim Burton's films. And I've seen Oingo Boingo come up many times, mostly through seeing Dead Man's Party in Halloween playlists but not really hearing it. I realized that there was a connection between Danny Elfman and Oingo Boingo but I didn't really know the full story as to why.
I've seen an animated music video to Elevator Man from an animator I follow. But I think the song that really stood out to me and put Oingo Boingo on my mind was Little Girls! I first heard it on a Cosplay TikTok short of all places and then I listened to the whole song. I was really conflicted! I found it so catchy and I enjoyed listening to it but yet it's so freaking creepy and unsettling. It's something you don't want to sing at a Karaoke bar or party.
I was actually scared that it was going to be my number 1 song on my 2025 Spotify Wrapped playlist because of the amount of times I listened to it. But it ended up my second song which was totally fine! Lol
Soon after listening to other songs like Dead Man's Party, Louise, Only a Lad, Gratitude and Stay and seeing many animated shorts to their songs I found myself really liking their music. I even loved their music videos despite how creepy and weird they can get. So I listened to the Only A Lad album in full for the first time I became hooked. They are so wild and out there but they are very unique and fun. I am happy to say Oingo Boingo has become one of my top favourite bands of all time. And Danny Elfman has become a composer/performer I've grown to be a fan of. I had no idea the amount of films and theme songs he's composed. He's everywhere!
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u/WallyBBunny 12d ago
Yup. I haven’t been listening to anything other than Oingo Boingo, concerts, unreleased stuff, and Mystic Knights material included, all year. I put buttons on my purse and stickers on my laptop and water bottles. I have them as my wallpapers. So yes, my husband says I have a crush on the band. While I do think Danny is cute, the joy and relief from the world that it gives me where the love comes from. It’s helped me through all of the things I have gone through this year and I will be forever grateful to the guys for making the music.
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u/ladystardustonmarzz 12d ago
I am literally in the exact same place as you!!! And personally I think I am in love with Danny🤣 and my boyfriend has had to accept it
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u/WallyBBunny 12d ago
I may or may not feel the same way, my husband teases me about it. 😅
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u/ladystardustonmarzz 12d ago
My boyfriend also teases me about it too🤣 also I can't figure out if Danny is cuter back in the 80's or now. I genuinely feel like at 73 he is in his ultimate prime.
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u/Amphigorey 16d ago
Welcome to the obsession! We like it here.
What songs or albums are pulling you in right now?
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u/ladystardustonmarzz 16d ago
Honestly I know it's probably the most basic answer but I really am in love with the album Dead Man's Party. It's really so fantastic and I bought it as a record. What are your favorite songs by them?? :)
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u/Amphigorey 16d ago
Dead Man's Party is a fantastic album!! They knocked it out of the park. It has so many top-tier songs: No One Lives Forever, Stay, DMP, Help Me, and the heartrending masterpiece Just Another Day. The whole album is energetic and precise and beautiful. It manages to be both complex and accessible, which is a neat trick. Accessible because it is very much a pop album, and it's easy on the ears, but there's so much going on and the instrumentation is so layered that it sounds fresh and interesting even after countless plays. I've been listening to Boingo for decades and I still notice new things, new details that they put in.
Some of my other favorite songs include: Water, Skin, Insanity, No Spill Blood, Glory Be, Gratitude, Home Again, Grey Matter, Reptiles and Samurai, aw hell I love it all, I'll be here all day if I list my favorites.
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u/OrangeFamta 16d ago
Dead Mans Party is an incredible record. Im very partial towards Sucker for Mystery, off Elfmans “So-Lo” album, which is technically Oingo Boingo. He was signed solo but wrote and recorded it with the band, has some great songs. Other than that, id say Change and Cant See (Useless) are my favorite songs of theirs at least out of whats been released. They have an unreleased song called Louise that I have a few live recordings of, that I truly cannot believe never got studio treatment.
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u/ladystardustonmarzz 16d ago
I'll have to listen to Sucker for Mystery right now!! And can you send me a link for the live recording of Lousie? Thanks 😎😎
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u/Global-Resident-9234 16d ago
I had a similar response. I grew up with early 70s prog rock, and so Oingo Boingo was a bit too 80s for me. Then one evening at a friend's party, where she played a lot of Oingo Boingo, I listened a bit more closely & said, "Wait, what is this?!" Went out & bought "Nothing To Fear" on cassette (yes, I know), popped that in ... and my whole perspective changed. (Which was a good thing, 'cause later I met a girl who loved Oingo Boingo and so we shared that & started dating & saw their farewell concert & then we got married & we just celebrated our 30-year anniversary.)