In 1996 I bought a CD of cover songs, all stuff that Christian radio liked but mostly stuff that I think the songwriters should feel embarrassed about. The CD was called Sacred Cows, it was by the Swirling Eddies, and it made me want to hear more stuff by this band who shared my sense of humor and contempt for the sounds I was hearing on the radio. I'm not angry, really, I just prefer artists that actually try to do something relevant instead of just trying to write a feel-good song with no meaning or substance just to make a quick buck.
About a month later I found myself in Richmond, checking out some CD's at a Christian bookstore, and I happened across a copy of the Swirling Eddies' previous effort, Zoom Daddy. I was hooked after track #1 ("I Had a Bad Experience with the CIA and Now I'm Gonna Show You My Feminine Side"), which has a hidden meaning so deep that I'm still not sure exactly what it is... Seriously, though, this is 1960's-influenced hard rock with a sense of humor, and the Eddies occasionally come up with something that really touches a nerve. I love this CD, particularly for "The Twist" (finest song about the Crucifixion ever written in any genre of music), "God Went Bowling", "Art Carney's Dream", and my personal favorite, "Pyro Sets a Wildfire".
