What the Folk!

Flight Of The Conchords, Flight Of The Conchords (2008)

Initially earning a cult through a live show in which they sat on stools, played acoustic guitars, and never cracked a smile while performing songs that punctured every cliché of romantic folkies and lusty R&B men, Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie took to the recording studio like a Rhymenoceros takes to a Hiphopopotamus. The first season of their HBO show was written around these songs (not the other way around), and they tweaked the arrangements just enough to make their debut something people can still listen to once they’re done laughing. Even a cursory listen reveals that Clement and McKenzie are far more than simply “New Zealand’s fourth most popular folk-parody duo.” They deserve to be at least third—maybe second.
Key track: “Business Time,” which proves they can turn just about anything into a “sexy dance.” (Michaelangelo Matos)