The Heist & Ka-Blamo!

Pop-ups (34 · 4 fan picks from YouTube comments)

1. Fans point here

   1:42

   1 YouTube comment timestamps this moment, 44 likes.

   I made two sports errors in the last episode, and I'm the one who knows about sports. What were they? Supposedly. Supposedly. I mean, I caught them both, by the way. So I shamed you guys for holding up a jersey in… — Seth

2. Erin's MS Paint animation discovered by podcast

   3:36

   A fan named Erin, who made an old MS Paint Windows Movie Maker animation of a pre-SNL song, wrote in. The hosts find it striking that a fan's 20-year-old project is finally being seen by the group.

   absolutely insane to see my old MS Paint Windows movie maker
   Quaid

3. The quump coined for Quaid bump

   4:47

   The hosts coin 'quump' as a portmanteau of 'Quaid bump,' the viewership increase when a YouTube video gets mentioned on the podcast. Football Town is the first to receive it.

   a quump is uh the quade bump when a youtube video gets more viewers after we mention it
   qumpQuaid bump

4. Andy as the jock of the group

   6:00

   Seth claims Andy is the jock of the group, playing soccer at a high level. Jorma then recounts his own disastrous soccer game with Andy's Sunday league.

   Andy is the jock of us

5. Digman moves to Netflix

   7:06

   Digman season two was on Comedy Central, but the first two seasons are moving to Netflix. Andy confirms the move via voice note and says the show is one of his proudest achievements.

   it's going to be on Netflix

6. Andy's voice note on Digman

   8:25

   Andy calls in with a voice note about Digman, telling Quaids to check it out, noting it is one of the things he is most proud of in his life.

   It's one of the things I'm most proud of in my whole life

7. Fans point here

   8:29

   2 YouTube comments timestamp this moment, 49 likes.

   Also, Jorm, none of the people playing in that game were semi-pro. Like, not even close. It was like Nick Kroll and Rory Scoville and stuff. Mitra Jahari. These are just comedians. None of them are semi-pro. I'm not… — Andy

8. House of Cosby pre-SNL voice work

   10:01

   The group voiced several Cosbys in House of Cosby, a pre-SNL video. Jorma's superhero Cosby is called Triosby, and the group recorded in a friend's kitchen.

   Your superhero Cosby is called the Triosby.

9. Yacht Rock as a fake VH1 show

   11:35

   Yacht Rock was a fake VH1 behind-the-music style series that invented stories about soft rock musicians. The makers included J.D. Risner, Hunter Stair, David Lyons, and Steve Huey.

   it was like a fake VH one behind the music

10. Fans point here

    16:00

    1 YouTube comment timestamps this moment, 3 likes.

    Who is everything you would think of in terms of like corrupt and just playing politics and does not care about people. And he basically gets in an accident and is in a coma. Doesn't he have a heart attack? Like having… — Akiva

11. Dave movie plot summary

    16:26

    Akiva summarizes Dave, a 1993 comedy where Kevin Kline plays a presidential impersonator who replaces a comatose president. The group discusses the film's politics and its suitability for kids.

    Kevin Kline plays a presidential impersonator
    Dave

12. Andy's brother's Gavin Newsom impression

    20:51

    Seth discusses Josh's Gavin Newsom impression, which Newsom responded to by leaning into the bit on Jimmy Kimmel.

    knockout Gavin Newsom impression

13. Fans point here

    22:23

    2 YouTube comments timestamp this moment, 1 likes.

    I feel like maybe you could do a fun one. I mean, I feel like it's probably it's local anesthetic. I mean, if you were like covered with a sheet. Yeah, that's fine. And we just we just had your head poking out like, I…

14. The Heist introduced as best pre-SNL song

    22:45

    Akiva introduces The Heist as arguably the best Lonely Island song made before SNL, a Jorma-and-Akiva special inspired by an idea later used in Lazy Sunday.

    And we have another that's actually arguably the best song we ever did previous to SNL.

15. The Heist beat and live guitars

    23:29

    Jorma made the beat for The Heist, and a friend played the live guitars at the end. Jorma asks listeners to identify the samples.

    There are live guitars at the end of it, too, which my friend played

16. Aaron X. Murray fan video

    24:27

    A fan-made live action video of a pre-SNL song shows up with 96,000 views, with Aaron X. Murray in it.

    look who's back. Aaron X. Murray

17. Mobb Deep sample identified

    25:47

    Jorma identifies the sample for the song as Mobb Deep, correcting the question he asked earlier.

    One detail here is not in the transcript.

    It's Mobb Deep.

18. Pam question: would the hosts record her?

    28:42

    Seth asks whether an unlimited-budget version would include Pam's voice. The guys say the song is about the men telling the story, not Pam.

    Going back, if you have an unlimited budget and this is a song that's going to be on an album, do you record Pam saying a line?

19. Female voices recalled from Artie Party

    28:58

    Akiva points out the group did have access to female voices, citing a line from Artie Party with a dump-in-your-drawers joke.

    we had access to female voices, as is proved by Artie Party with Artie Look Good with that dump in your drawers.

20. Wu-Tang and Biggie influences on The Heist

    29:17

    Akiva describes the song as Wu-Tang-style back-and-forth storytelling with a Biggie influence, mocking self-serious rap.

    I feel like we're trying to do a little bit of Wu-Tang style back and forth, like Ghostface-y stuff.

21. ELO sample blocked later official release

    29:56

    Andy recalls the Heist's sample was from ELO's Tightrope, and the cost of licensing it kept the song from an official release.

    The sample yarm is ELO, Tightrope, the great electric light orchestra, one of our faves.

22. Akiva's RZA-style delivery

    30:53

    Andy argues Akiva is doing a full-throated RZA impression, similar to Gravedigger's RZA, which later smoothed out.

    Akiva's really doing RZA. Like, it's full-throated, yelling RZA.

23. Andy names The Heist his top pre-SNL song

    31:48

    Andy gives the crown to The Heist, saying it opened up what dumb comedy songs could do, and mentions Stork Patrol as a close second.

    gun to my head, I'd probably take the heist and obviously the blueprint for Lazy Sunday

24. Ka-Blamo! first Lonely Island music video

    36:02

    Ka-Blamo! was the group's first music video attempt, shot in their original apartment soon after moving to LA with a borrowed camera.

    it was our first attempt at a music video ever, I would say. So this was, this is shot in the original Lonely Island apartment

25. Beats made on an eight-track recorder

    37:07

    Jorma explains the beat was built by looping a record through a BR-8 eight-track recorder and matching drums on Technics turntables.

    a record player was plugged into the BR-8, which is a eight-track digital recorder.

26. Nice and Smooth homage

    41:00

    Akiva says Jorma was trying to channel Greg Nice from the hip hop duo Nice and Smooth, which the guys tied to early 2000s NYC nightclubs.

    Like when we were listening to Artie Party, like Jorm's trying to do Greg Nice from Nice and Smooth.

27. Ka-Blamo! roof footage in Popstar

    42:11

    Footage from the Ka-Blamo! shoot, including the rooftop scene filmed at UCLA, was reused in the film Popstar.

    there's a shot in it that's from Kablamo that I don't know if it's from the video

28. Evan the EMT in the ambulance shot

    45:38

    The ambulance shot features Evan, a friend of Michael Black who had just become an EMT and was on call for the shoot.

    Our friend Michael Black's friend, Evan, had just become an EMT, and he was our friend too at the time.

29. Fred Siegel sign and clothing store

    45:50

    The Ka-Blamo! lyrics reference Fred Siegel, a famous LA clothing store the group couldn't afford, and the Ivy sign.

    Fred Siegel, for those that don't live in L.A., Fred Siegel was a very famous clothing store

30. Brass Monkey and Santana DVX

    47:09

    Jorma recalls Santana DVX as the group's Brass Monkey equivalent, a hard-to-find drink referenced in the lyrics.

    Santana DVX was our Brass Monkey, which I believe is a real drink just that's really fucking hard to get.

31. Dry vocals and the missing reverb

    47:34

    The guys explain the early vocals were recorded dry, and they learned later to add EQ and reverb, which real studio engineers apply before a singer even steps to the mic.

    We didn't even know that every song you've ever heard has a little bit of EQ making them brighter and a little bit of reverb minimum.

32. Editing tricks in Ka-Blamo!

    49:02

    Akiva and Jorma point to the flashes, polarizations and magnifying-glass lens effects used to make the video look chaotic.

    there's a lot of flashes that you added, Keev. Like, I think they're like polarizations

33. Just Two Guys as the stronger early promise

    51:26

    Akiva says Just Two Guys shows more of the promise they had, while Ka-Blamo! is more a sign of youthful experimentation.

    You don't necessarily watch that and go, oh, I see all the promise that's here. The way Just Two Guys, I kind of do.

34. Texting Andy for voice-note answers

    51:55

    The hosts compose questions for Andy about Ka-Blamo!, Digman News, Netflix and Spelling Bee, and he responds in voice notes.

    All right. So I'm composing the text to Andy.

35. Andy's Queen Bee streak

    52:43

    Andy reports a four-day Queen Bee streak in Spelling Bee and calls clean wins his purpose, a fan-favorite bit tied to 'clean' and 'quibi'.

    I got Queen Bee clean today.

    Goes back to Queen Bee, Ep. 8, 18:30, Seth: By the way, I also got, he didn't tell me to check my phone, but he also got Queen Bee on the spelling bee, which he texted me right before this started.

    cleanQueen Beequibi

36. Andy used a hint to miss one day

    53:20

    Andy admits he used a hint one day, breaking a six-day streak, and jokes he won't let Seth off with that win.

    I didn't miss, actually. I just used a hint. So in your face again, Seth, I guess.

37. Andy wants the last 'Later' sign-off

    53:45

    Andy asks to get the final word after someone says 'Later, Arnold', which is then the closing bit of the episode.

    if someone else says later Arnold, I'd be pissed.
    later, Quaids

38. Later, Quaids sign-off

    54:38

    The podcast's parting line 'Later, Quaids' closes the episode with the Arnold soundbite convention.

    Take it away, Arnold. Later, Arnold. Later, Arnold. Later, Quades.
    later, Quaids