Ain't It Marvelous?

Marvelous 3. They are pop, they are punk, they are rock… They are fantastic. The song above, “Freak of the Week,” is probably their most well-known singles off the “Hey! Album” and it’s my pick for this Saturday.

There are songs that are just meant to be personal anthems. There are those times when you just feel like you aren’t worthy, and no matter how hard you try, you’re just not good enough.

“I spend all my money on the clothes that I got
Cuz all the geeks that I meet, they all look cooler then me
But what to do when they’re all lookin’ at you
Cuz you’re the freak of the week”

But then you play that song and somewhere in that overanalyzing, jam packed mind of yours, you flip that switch. The song helps you send a subliminal finger to whoever may be “The Man” of the moment. Don’t let them put you down because you could put a stop to it if you try.

“Can you make me a promise
Stop it before we begin
Will you hold onto my head
If I ever lose it again”

I’d say this song fits that category quite nicely.

Sadly, this band never got enough backing from their record label. This is a story often told. However, this band took matters into their own hands. Instead of waiting around for the label to drop them after months and months of neglect, Marvelous 3 gave Elektra Records the boot in 2001.

Butch Walker, the band’s lead singer and guitarist wrote this shortly after the separation on the band’s website:

“There has been an incredible amount of “lack of interest” for the band over at Elektra (‘cough, ahem, Neglectra, cough, cough’) Records lately, and that comes as no surprise, seeing that every record they put out most recently, sinks like a dead, anchored body in the Hudson River…Well, the time has come. We are free from Elektra. I asked them to let us go, and they did. WE DID NOT GET DROPPED.. I ASKED TO LEAVE.”

Chutzpah. I admire that.

The band didn’t last much longer, but they put out three marvelous albums, “Math and Other Problems,” “Hey! Album,” and “ReadySexGo”. How ironic.

Butch Walker, the lead singer and guitarist, has since gone on to write and produce for the likes of FOB, Family Force 5,The Donnas, All Time Low, and Lit. He’s a musical genius in my opinion. Rumor has it, he also puts on an awesome show of his own.

+A