"Calypso" is a song by Australian
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band
Spiderbait
Spiderbait is an Australian alternative rock band from Finley, New South Wales, formed in 1991 by bass guitarist and singer Janet English, drummer and singer Kram (musician), Kram, and guitarist Damian Whitty. In 2004 the group's cover version o ...
. It was released in April 1997 as the third single from the band's third studio album, ''
Ivy and the Big Apples
''Ivy and the Big Apples'' is the third studio album by Australian rock band Spiderbait. It became a double platinum-selling record that reached the top 10 of the albums chart in Australia and won the 1997 ARIA Award for Best Alternative Relea ...
'' (1996). "Calypso" peaked at number 13 on the Australian
ARIA Singles Chart
The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
, and it was ranked at number 23 on
Triple J's Hottest 100 for 1997.
At the
ARIA Music Awards of 1997
The 11th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards) were held on 22 September 1997 at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney. The event was hosted by Australian actor–comedian Paul McDerm ...
, the song was nominated for Best Video, losing out to "Feelin' Kinda Sporty" by
Dave Graney & the Coral Snakes.
Reception
Junkee
Junkee is an Australian popular culture and news website run by new media company Junkee Media. It covers various topics including film, university, food, TV, politics, travel, career, health and Internet culture. Its target demographic is 18- to ...
said, "its main verse riff is essentially "
Blitzkreig Bop
Blitzkrieg Bop is a song by American punk rock band, Ramones, released in February 1976 as their debut single in the United States. It appeared as the opening track on the band's debut album, '' Ramones'', released two months later.
The song, ...
" with a
J Mascis
Joseph Donald Mascis Jr. ( ; born December 10, 1965), better known as J Mascis, is an American musician who is the singer, guitarist and main songwriter for the alternative rock band Dinosaur Jr. He has also released several albums as a solo arti ...
makeover, while Janet English's code-switching vocals add a rousing sense of joy to proceedings. While Australian pop-punk may not be the house that Spiderbait built, they certainly still helped to put bricks in the wall."
Track listing
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Release history
References
{{Authority control
1996 songs
1997 singles
Polydor Records singles
Spiderbait songs