Under most circumstances, I despise mashup culture. Artistic recombination of older ingredients is fine, but the wholesale cultural cannibalism that's so frequently on display on Youtube and in dance clubs cheeses me off most of the time.
But occasionally the mashup fad produces something that even killjoys like me can enjoy. For instance:
I think the reason this video works as well as it does for me is my familiarity with the song used here. Though I don't listen to much hip-hop, I enjoy the hell out of Enter the Wu-tang (36 Chambers) and still spin it on occasion. Wu-tang Clan's charm stems largely from their cartoonish image--thuggish, meth-smoking tricksters with a bizarre martial arts fixation. Seeing their outsized music paired so perfectly with an actual cartoon suits the mood of the song wonderfully. The fact that the source footage comes from a thoroughly sanitized children's show ramps up the gonzo factor even more. It's a classic use of juxtaposition for comedic effect.
That same juxtaposition effect appears in this mashup of Meshuggah's "Bleed" with Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi," but it isn't the center of attention here. Yes, it's funny to hear Lady Gaga--who, for all of her new media acumen and gender-identity play, is a pretty conventional pop star--sing over a weird prog metal number. It simply works so shockingly well that you forget the humor. The Gaga vocal track sounds like it might've been written for the reconfigured Meshuggah instrumental, or vice versa. The subtle keys in the chorus, which verged on 70s-schlocky in the original version of "Bleed," take on a whole new menace when paired with the vocal hook.
Both of these example demonstrate the skill required to engineer an effective mashup--intellectual, as well as technical, skill. It's a shame that most other examples lack the former.
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