I Said Hello Eugene

Through the magic of KSYM 90.1 in San Antonio, I have discovered many, many new favorite bands. Among the list of amazing new artists growing in my music library you’ll find the newest addition: Pink Martini.

What sounds like the name of a really weird drink is a really unique collection of musicians who land somewhere between “a 1930′s Cuban dance orchestra, a classical chamber music ensemble, a Brasilian marching street band, and Japanese film noir.” (from their last.fm profile)

Founded in 1994 by Harvard grad and classically trained pianist Thomas M. Lauderdale in Portland, Oregon, the 12-piece Pink Martini mainly plays fundraisers for good causes like civil rights and public broadcasting, among many others.

The video above is the title track of their most recent album Hey Eugene! and is possibly their best song to date, or in any case the song most likely to break them in to mainstream music. The song, as described by vocalist and songwriter China Forbes, is about a guy she met at a party, made out with, gave her phone number to, and he never called her. So she wrote this song about him.

You’ll love it by the end of the first verse, I promise.