I remember distinctly my introduction to Oingo Boingo. It was some point in the early 80s and it was Saturday morning, perhaps Sunday, but most likely Saturday. It would be late morning or early afternoon. There was a show on sort of like “American Bandstand” or “Soul Train” but probably a local show, not nationally syndicated. The camera panned to the left and on a riser was Oingo Boingo and they began performing “Grey Matter” and I didn’t know what to think. My musical knowledge was limited and even then it was all mainstream top 40 stuff.
“Grey Matter”
It would be several years before I truly became aware of the band, but that song and performance stuck with me.
Because I was in the Army going through basic training it wasn’t until after the fact that I caught up with the film Weird Science which wound up providing the band with its biggest hit, but by the time Back To School hit theaters in 1986 I was well aware of Oingo Boingo’s participation (providing the song “Dead Man’s Party” and performing in the film) and had become familiar with most of their singles up to that point.
By the time 1987’s BOI-NGO album came out I was a fan. While there were a couple of official singles the local alternative radio station played a number of tracks off this album regularly. To this day it might be my favorite Oingo Boingo album (though Nothing To Fear is just so crazy and has some fantastic songs). What I remember about BOI-NGO was nearly everybody was listening to the band then. It seemed unreal that a band I barely knew about a few years ago and nobody else seemed to have heard of was not one of the favorites of nearly all my friends.
“Elevator Man”
I had the opportunity to see Oingo Boingo live but didn’t because I expected to catch them next time around. I turned around and Oingo Boingo announced they would indeed be breaking up in 1995. I was crushed.
While Oingo Boingo may not have changed music or been a landmark band in music history their unique sound has always had appeal. I have since collected all of the band’s albums and most of their soundtrack appearances, though there are still a few that elude me. It’s more difficult now that used record stores are fewer and far between.
I miss Danny Elfman’s brand of rock music and wish there was more of it.
“Winning Side”