Pecking out a Tune with Céleste Boursier-Mougenot

As part of a show later this month at The Curve Gallery in London, artist Céleste Boursier-Mougenot has combined zebra finches with a Les Paul guitar; video embedded above. See more photos of this work & other dadaist pieces here.

Happy Birthday, Ray Stevens!

Ray Stevens, writer of great songs like 1974 nudist novelty smash "The Streak" (video above), turns 71 Sunday.

Stevens' other wacky hits over the years have included "Ahab the Arab," "Shriner's Convention" and "Jeremiah Peabody's Polyunsaturated Quick-Dissolving, Fast-Acting Pleasant-Tasting Green and Purple Pills."

Prince Reveals His "Fight Song" For The Vikings

Prince's fight song for the Vikings might work if they played badminton, but it's WAY too wimpy for football. Then again, if they play this in New Orleans, the Saints might be laughing too hard to play. Brilliant!

Those Darn Accordions At The New Freight & Salvage

It's not too soon to mark your new Accordion Babes calendars for the first Big TDA show of the year. It's right around the corner in Berkeley, CA at the New Freight and Salvage on Jan 15. Show time is 8 pm. tickets are $18.50 Advance and 19.50 at the door.
What, you don't have you Accordion Babes calendar yet? Holy bellows, Batman. Better get one now! Be sure to wear your new Flying Accordion Bot shirt and get a free CD!. What, you don't have your new Bot shirt yet? Holy Robots, Batman, better get one Right Now!

Those Darn Accordions At The Freight And Salvage

You can have a listen to all the cool bands lined up to play the beautiful new Freight and Salvage in Berkeley, CA. Of course, we are on the list. We will be there Jan 15 at 8pm! It's #20 of our 20 City tour.

Sketchy Santas

This is guaranteed to get you in the Christmas spirit!

Robo-Hamsters Are Hot Toys This Year

Robotic hamsters called Zhu Zhu Pets are selling like mad this holiday season. The toys come in several versions, including Mr. Squiggles (pictured), Num Nums, Pipsqueek and Chunk. They are currently going for $50 and up on Amazon.com.

From Amazon's product description: "Each Zhu Zhu Hamter has its own unique personality & whimsical sounds. Loving Mode: Pet them, love them, hear them chatter Explore Mode: Let them scoot, scamper, across the floor. Provide them with their Hamster Habitat."

The Associated Press calls the toys, which originally sold for $10, "an unlikely hit." (That's what everybody said about "Hamsterman.")

(Thanks for the tip, Bill from Milwaukee, who says: "Perfect gift for Hamsterman this x-mas!")