I'm leaving for Vegas tonight to see the final performance of their latest residency, so I spent all week re-listening to all of their albums on vinyl. Apparently when you crack open my crusty shell, the 13-year old version is still intact within, gobsmacked by how seriously a bunch of adults can pursue their silliness.
I spent about five minutes worrying that I'd be disappointed seeing them again now that they (and I) are so old, but then I told myself to shut up. “They’re so over the hill” is the least B-52s sentiment imaginable. Their edginess was never dependent upon youth. They weren't exactly rebels, but they gloried in pillaging what’s old and awkward for the creation of something new and cool that embraces squareness rather than mocking it. What they want - what they’ve always wanted - is for people to have FUN, and they’re entirely non-judgmental about how you want to do it (unless it involves putting anyone down, in which case, no thanks). It’s a spirit that makes just as much sense old as it does young. As a blueprint for a culture, you could hardly do better. And I guess that’s why they’ve always been my favorites - because I still wistfully believe that if everyone shared their courage, spirit, and humor, this would be a better world.
Anyway, "Song for a Future Generation" is one of the greatest things ever committed to video.