We’re Just As Surprised That The Pipettes Are Big In Hello Kitty’s Homeland As You Are

No more bands like this.

Please.

Uncle.

People need to stop dissing the Pipettes for real. See them live and you’ll eat all your words.

while they’re no Pussywillows, i think teh Pipettes are pretty enjoyable listening

Whatevs! Worst live show since The Long Blonds. STAY IN KEY, y’all. Seriously.

er, The Long Blondes, I mean. Such a disappointment live. I’m still not over it.

@narymary: I did. I wasn’t impressed. TRGAW is OTM here.

ban all polka dots not on poofy late ’80s shirts featured in snap videos.

This video reminds me a bit too heavily of just about all CGI from the mid 90′s on back. “Beyond the Mind’s Eye” anyone?

Saw them live in Boston back in June, and they were consistently on-key despite all the dancing. No idea what you’re all talking about.

Also, polka dots are love.

Are they SERIOUSLY going to have Robyn be a hook girl to get her back into the states? That is the WORST IDEA EVER.

Say what will about the Pipettes, but based on the above video, the Come On’s aren’t bringing much either. Yawny mcyawn.

“Indie” is so tired…This sort of thing is not even earnest enough
to be a guilty pleasure. ZZZZzzzz. In my house, Disney is in charge of
bringing the modernized, genre-mixing retro-pop with the dash of
taboo-sexy and no irony. Awesome.

Boo on the haters. The Pipettes aren’t genius but they’re catchy, breezy and fun. And I’m going to marry RiotBecki.

Fans of the Pipettes…

…you DO know that almost all of the Motown catalog is still in print, yes?

Oh right. They’re cute. I forgot.

@therichgirlsareweeping: Hang on a second… Which Long Blondes show did you catch? Their set this summer in DC was excellent, as was the 2006 gig in Philly. Granted, the Blondes’ live show is mostly about Kate, so I can understand being disappointed if she’s not rocking it.

@maura: I will gladly acknowledge that Becki of the Pipettes had trouble staying on key when I saw them this summer. But what exactly is wrong with a band that is cute and playful and actually has some darker lyrical moments hidden in the pop veneer? I’ll certainly check out the Come Ons, but I see no reason to dump on the Pipettes just because another band is working in the same ballpark.

And the NYT article is just stupid.

I think the Pipettes are the gender-reversed version of artists like James Blunt: all their fans are either adult males or preteens. I don’t know any adult women who’ve copped to digging ‘em. But then, I’ve never been to Japan.

@Deadly Tango: I agree with Deadly Tango here. I thought they brought it live and I was skeptical. And are we really gonna bring up the live band on key argument, really? Because I RARELY see a band with an on-key singer, and people tend to be MUCH harsher on women than men in the singing department.

Despite the overcompressed nightmare that was the Pipettes’ album, I’d still gladly see them live.

@Lucas Jensen: Frankly, I’m hard on ALL vocalists, not just women.

If I’m gonna give a band some of my time, I expect that they (at the very least) perform in key. I mean, if cutesy harmonies are like, your hook, then hey, like, maybe you should make sure you can actually perform your tricks outside a studio environment. Not having control of your instrument, be it your voice or your guitar or whatever, is extremely unprofessional. They have vocal coaches to correct that kind of thing, you know.

@Deadly Tango: I saw The Long Blondes at Bowery this summer; I’d seen them before, and frankly, they just can’t work a room big room yet. Also, Kate’s little-girl vampy/cute stage persona really bugs me, because it’s extremely at odds with the grown-up seriousness of the songs.

@Charlie Kerfelds Jetsons Tee: Being from the Detroit area, I have heard of this “Motown” you speak of. I just don’t think that its existence invalidates all that came after it.

But I do admit the James Blunt comparison might hit a little close to home.

I thought the Pipettes were really fun live–although I did see them at a weird Macy’s-sponsored fashion show for BU students where one of the amps caught on fire. I liked the way they tried to keep going even when their drummer was coughing and the place was filling up with smoke. Also, Gwenno’s totally cute. And, I’m sorry, anybody who plays little keyboards and sings in Welsh is a-ok with me.

I don’t care, I just can’t get over the brilliantness of the facetious headline of this entry. I actually clicked on it because I wasn’t sure if it was serious or not. I’m a fool.

Gwenno’s the only Pipette that can sing and looks like she’s actually comfortable on stage.

@therichgirlsareweeping: My DC experience was at a small room (Rock and Roll Hotel, maybe 100), while the Philly show was part of the “Making Time” dance nights and was a larger room (200+). I agree that many bands can’t make the jump from small stages to bigger (but still underground) ones, but I haven’t seen the Blondes at a larger venue. (By comparison, the Pipettes had the Black Cat 2/3 full — probably 400 people in the room.)

As for the perceived dissonance, keep in mind that Dorian has written most of the songs — he even mutters the words to himself while Kate’s singing — so “protagonist” vs. “vocalist” issues can get a little convoluted.

@Deadly Tango: Yeah, I admit, when I found out that Dorian wrote the songs, I decided that he needed to be my babydaddy and that Kate could buzz off.

I want to barely crack a six-figure SoundScan mark.

Whatever, dudes. I saw them three times in three days at SXSW and they got better each time. It’s just that there is no trace of irony or unhappiness in the personas at all, and some people just cannot handle that. That and I have a big crush on Rosay :-(