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‘Planet of the Bass’ is our most anticipated song of the summer

’90s Eurodance parody is legit great

A close-up of Kyle Gordon as DJ Crazy Times saying “BASS!” from the Planet of the Bass music video Image: Kyle Gordon
Michael McWhertor is a journalist with more than 17 years of experience covering video games, technology, movies, TV, and entertainment.

The best song of the summer is not only a joke, it’s not even out yet. But it’s “Planet of the Bass” by DJ Crazy Times and Ms. Biljana Electronica, and purely based on the 51-second clip uploaded by Kyle Gordon — the alter ego of DJ Crazy Times — when it does drop, I will never get it out of my head. Not only does it make me want to put my hands up in the air (put my hands up in the air), I agree with its timely messages: War should stop, and women are my favorite guy.

“Planet of the Bass” parodies Eurodance hitmakers 2 Unlimited, Culture Beat, Aqua, Haddaway, Real McCoy, Snap!, La Bouche, and others — you know, a generally attractive female lead singer supported by a hypeman doing a gravel-voiced semi-rap — but does it so perfectly that the song is a legit bop on its own. It doesn’t hurt that it’s filmed in a bland location, the Oculus in lower Manhattan, giving it vague “Sandstorm” by Darude vibes. It’s basically an encapsulation of why we watch Eurovision.

The song’s wonky English-language lyrics (“When the rhythm is glad/There is nothing to be sad,” “Life, it never die/Women are my favorite guy”) are also wildly endearing.

DJ Crazy Times is a character that Gordon’s been doing for a few years now, but “Planet of the Bass” is rightfully putting the comedian in the spotlight — the virtual one, at least, on TikTok, Twitter, and Tumblr, inspiring not only rabid anticipation of the upcoming “BASS!” drop, but also excellent fan art.

Discriminating music fans are also faced with another realization, thanks to the “Planet of the Bass” teaser: It fits perfectly with The World Ends With You gameplay and any video of Sonic the Hedgehog (but especially Sonic R, in the example below). It’s only a matter of time before someone mods it into Jet Set Radio or the upcoming Bomb Rush Cyberfunk.

“Planet of the Bass” will be released Aug. 15, but you can pre-save it now on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, and Deezer.

Update (Aug. 3): Kyle Gordon said Wednesday, on behalf of DJ Crazy Times, that the release date for “Planet of the Bass” has been moved up a week, from Aug. 22 to Aug. 15, ensuring that the world will heal sooner, faster. Gordon also noted that the musical act will no longer film at the Oculus, but that Mr. Times will “shoot videos in the former Yugoslavia” going forward.

Update (Aug. 4): DJ Crazy Times/Kyle Gordon dropped a second teaser video for “Planet of the Bass” on Thursday, a version supposedly shot in Zagreb, Croatia (which sure looks a lot more like New York’s Roosevelt Island). In doing so, Gordon ignited a small amount of controversy. The second video appeared to feature a different woman on vocals, a change that has deeply disturbed fans of Ms. Biljana Electronica.

While some viewers cried foul, believing Gordon to have made a monumental mistake in re-promoting his viral hit, others argued that this too is part of the overall Eurodance parody. In an interview with The New York Times, Gordon revealed that the original vocalist on the track is actually a different woman altogether: Chrissi Poland. And he reportedly has a third video on the way, which will again replace his frontwoman. Given the viral whiplash, will DJ Crazy Times, Ms. Biljana Electronica, and the rest of society make it safely to Aug. 15?

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