wicked

I was always freaked out a little at the overt sexuality of the video for Chris Isaak’s song "Wicked Game." The whole Herb Ritts rolling-clouds-still-black-and-white-photo turned music video erotica, featuring a topless Helena Christensen and Isaak getting it on it the sand was iconic. This was actually TOO hypersexual for my young brain to take (I was only NINE YEARS OLD when I first saw it–on heavy rotation–I watched a lot of MTV during my childhood, you have to understand.....)

And I always had a little something against Isaak... He so obviously wanted to *be* Elvis Presley, and I thought: get a new look and sound, dude. I was just reading the list of producers on his tracks of his greatest hits (my mom’s!), and out popped Eric Rosse, who was not only boyfriend and producer of Tori Amos, but also is responsible for producing Lisa Marie Presley’s debut record. How funny is that? The kind of funny that made Nick Cage wham-bam-marry Presely. PRESLEY.....I slagged him awf as adult contemporary....he’s two years younger than my mom, fer crying out loud....which actually makes the whole Elvis thing a little more acceptable...

ANYWAY. My young mind was too distracted and even a little bothered by all the sexxxxxiness of that famously sexual video (including very skillfully simulated sex, I must remind you). I never actually *heard* the song, you see...I just saw it. It was inextricably tied to the video I had seen and I forgot about the song, really.

Then a few months ago, an old friend from high school, contacted me through myspace, and she had it on her profile. The song took me out with a wallop. It sounded really outta place and felt like it just stopped everything. It felt like it was gonna rain. That kind of ominous, sexy anticipation.

And now I am really listening to it. And I’m loving it. It’s a bit weird for me to like this slow of music. But it evokes that sexy, superstoned Twin Peaks vibe, where Audrey Horn is all swaying in her saddle shoes with her statutory thighs and what not.

And it also does something wonderful: it really makes you wanna hear the Real Elvis and the Real Roy Orbison.

oh. And I know yer thinking about it. you can watch it here. (Don’t be shy, 42, 000 plus people already have gone there and..."viewed it")