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Sparks

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Musicians

The Resume

    (1967- )
    Born in Los Angeles, California
    Led by the Mael brothers, Ron (keyboards, songwriting) and Russell (vocals)
    Recorded the albums ‘A Woofer in Tweeter’s Clothing’ (1972), ‘Kimono My House’ (1974), ‘Indiscreet’ (1975), ‘No. 1 in Heaven’ (1979), ‘Terminal Jive’ (1980), ‘Angst in My Pants’ (1982), ‘In Outer Space’ (1983), ‘Music You Can Dance To’ (1986), ‘Gratuitous Sex and Senseless Violins’ (1994), ‘Lil Beethoven’ (2002), ‘Hello Young Lovers’ (2006), ‘The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman’ (2009), and ‘Hippopotamus’ (2017)
    Recorded the singles ‘This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us’ (1974), ‘The Number One Song in Heaven’ (1979), ‘Beat the Clock’ (1979), ‘I Predict’ (1982), ‘Cool Places’ (with Jane Wiedlin, 1983), ‘Music That You Can Dance To’ (1986), and ‘When Do I Get to Sing ‘My Way’’ (1994)

Why they might be annoying:

    They jumped on the glam, disco, and new wave bandwagons.
    In live performances, Russell acts hyperactive, while Ron limits himself to a deadpan scowl.
    They made an appearance in the flop disaster film ‘Rollercoaster’ (1976), after Kiss turned it down.
    Their attempt to adapt the Japanese anime ‘Mai, the Psychic Girl’ into a musical fell into development hell for over two decades, remaining unproduced as of 2020.
    Their song ‘Angst in My Pants’ was used in an underwear commercial (2015).

Why they might not be annoying:

    They are known for sophisticated and acerbic lyrics.
    They held a 21-show ‘Sparks Spectacular’ in London, playing each of their albums in full in chronological order (May 16-June 13, 2008).
    They teamed with Franz Ferdinand to record the album ‘FFS.’ (2015)
    ’Kimono My House’ was named as a favorite album by Morrissey and Bjork.
    They have also been cited as an influence by New Order, Sonic Youth, and Nirvana.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 83 Votes: 61.45% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 19 Votes: 15.79% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 71 Votes: 46.48% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 88 Votes: 43.18% Annoying