There has been a lot of pop music on Feministe lately – Sarah posted about Robyn recently, and s.e smith posted about Janelle Morae (both artists of which I Approve). So, in honour of Pride this weekend, I thought I’d post about my favourite band of literally ever. Dragonette are a Canadian electropop band that consist of singer Martina, bassist and producer Dan, guitarist Chris and drummer Joel. Their two albums Galore and Fixin to Thrill have constituted some of the catchiest, dirtiest, and occasionally queerest pop around over the last two years, yet sadly both have been underwhelming in terms of sales. It is therefore necessary for all of you who might be interested in such things to listen and/or watch the alarmingly sexy video for their first single “I Get Around.”
The immense video for Dragonette’s “I Get Around.” Possibly not safe for work, depending on your work. Also, due to annoying copyright issues the embedded video is cut short. Click through here to watch the full one on the band’s channel.
Singer Martina walks to the entrance of a nightclub, wearing amazing golden heels. She sings seductively to the doorman, then they kiss and there is a flash and voila! Martina becomes the doorman. She walks up the stairs, singing. She enters the club, where there is a band playing – coincidentally (or maybe NOT) – Dragonette’s amazing “I Get Around” single. We see two girls dancing closely with one another, one wearing blue dress with a cracking bob haircut and headband, the other wearing what looks like a black rubber leotard. Doorman-Martina dances with the girls, then there is various threesome action. Doorman-Martina kisses the one in the leotard and becomes her. Rubber-leotard Martina dances some more with blue dress and headband girl. Then she starts singing to and flirting with the dapper tuxedo-wearing male singer of the band, finally kissing him and then there’s a larger flash and she becomes him. For some reason, the original Martina has appeared in the corner, crooning “here I come.” Dapper singer Martina approaches original Martina also singing “here I come,” and then they kiss and the screen flashes to white. It is all proper amazing.
Lyrics taken from here
9 am
In your bedroom
The radio alarm clock
is set for soon
I know you friends
and you know mine too
you don’t tell on me I won’t tell on you
I get around
Seconds to your elevator
from the station
How can I resist
that kinda invitation
Second floor and I’m in trouble
Gotta get me back down to street level
I get around
Here I come when I better go
I say yes when I ought to say no
Here I come when I better go
I say yes when I ought to say no
Quietly slide away off the mattress
Find my clothing on the bed post
So I tip toe out of this mess
As I slip back into last nights dress
I get around
Put a little lipstick back on my face
Blow a little kiss to you from the doorway
walk the hall right past the stair case
take the elevator back down out of this place
I get around
Here I come when I better go
I say yes when I ought to say no
Here I come when I better go
I say yes when I ought to say no
I say yes when I ought to say no
I say yes when I ought to say no
I say yes
I say yes
I say yes
I say yes
I say yes
Say yes
Say ya
So basically, this video has everything, no? Magic kisses causing person/gender switches, all kinds of het and queer sexiness, Martina looking amazing in a tuxedo, and some self-love at the end. God knows what it all means (I’m going with nothing), but it is generally hawt and for once with pop music the interestingness of the music actually matches the visuals (I’m looking at you, Gaga. Ditch Red-One, his production is so tired it needs a cup of milky and a little sleepy).
And fear not! This is not the end of the Dragonette amazingness. “Take It Like a Man” features genderbent lyrics and allusions to BDSM and bloodplay, and the video is about a bored porn actress in the 70s. Also, the chorus is a bit like Abba and that is Never a Bad Thing. Also worth your time is “Fixin to Thrill,” which has an immense bass riff of immenseness, and the lovely “Pick Up the Phone,” which marries New Wave guitars and synths with handclaps and sweet “oh-oh-oh” bits. The videoclip features Martina and what appears to be her girlfriend Cherry (in the song, in real life she’s married to bandmate Dan) trashing their high school. And who hasn’t wanted to do that sometimes?
What I like about Dragonette is they’re sexy, in a fairly obviously polymorphous queer way. Most of the time, I tend to think that overtly sexual music is quite tedious, trying to be edgy or even controversial and coming off as adolescent and naff. But Dragonette manage to be sexy, frank but never motivated by the desire to shock. Thus they avoid the deadlocked prude/prurient vacillation of more popular music in which the latent message is so often a tiresome “look at me, I’m so naughty..”
Happy Pride, y’all.