Episode 93: Josie and the Pussycats (2001) feat. Monia
Monia Ali, the Exiled Fan, and my podcast BFF is back again to discuss the 2001 film Josie and the Pussycats. I wrote about it back in 2021; the Unspooled episode mentioned is here.
Some of the topics we discussed are:
The 20th anniversary Josie reunion.
Josie and the Pussycats absolutely solved crimes in the comics.
There’s no need for subliminal advertising anymore because we are constantly advertised to; the flip side of that is subtextual analysis is everywhere but nobody is talking about the text itself.
“Selling Out” as a concept doesn’t exist anymore (but it is a great book by Dan Ozzi).
Meet Me In The Bathroom (2022) was a documentary covering the late 1990s and early 2000s rock scene in New York. It’s an interesting counterpart to Josie because it’s covering the same era in rock but from a different angle. This is an era I’m intimately familiar with, as I was very active on the scene and saw quite a few bands like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs in concert before and during their mainstream/major label crossover. A friend and I even interviewed Adam Green from the Moldy Peaches at one point. I’d been very into the idea of an Andy Warhol revival and leaning into the absurdity of celebrity at the time and I remember Adam just not picking up on anything I was talking about. An early lesson in how critics project meaning onto artists. The documentary is worth watching as a snapshot of a lost moment in time, a reverse image of the pre-9/11 world of Josie.
The rise of the “normal person” celebrity à la the cast of The Jersey Shore leading to influencers.
Faux boy band DuJour is barely even parody. “Back Door Lover” and “Liquid Dreams” are kissing cousins. One of the most charming elements of Josie is the fact that literally everyone loves DuJour, including the girls in the band. Who doesn’t love the boy bands of the era—even the music production dudes I went to school with loved *NSYNC.
Poptimism vs Rockism (along with the “Westernization of K-Pop”) is seemingly the debate that never dies. You can read plenty on poptimism.
Part of getting older is apparently seeing what we considered slop culture get unearthed as treasures by the younger generations. I suppose one woman’s Gilligan’s Island on Nick-at-Nite is a younger woman’s Puddle of Mudd.
Kay Hanley isn’t getting paid—which led to discussion of the production designer of Obsession’s viral post and the cast of the original Blair Witch Project.
And Party Every Day is the book about Casablanca Records.
Vinyl record plants booked for what is essentially just merch nobody is going to listen to and often sound terrible.
Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains (1982) may have to be another episode. The film was directed by Lou Adler, who we discuss in episode 79 on the Mamas & the Papas.
Alexandra is here because she’s in the comics. (Side note: I love Missi Pyle.)
Backstreet Boys sues their label for interfering with the group and trying to poach Nick as a solo act.
Alan M. in the comics is a hunk like Fred from Scooby Doo but in the movie he’s giving Quinn Allman from the Used.
“The Ugliest Man on Hinge” viral post.
Tara Reid’s incredible low rise pants. (I miss these.) And her relationship with Carson Daly. (I don’t miss him.)
Should Melody have been more heavily coded as a stoner?
Hallmark movies are the best. The Rachel Leigh Cook one I just watched is this one.
B4-4 rules and I will take any excuse to play this song.
The songs played are:
“3 Small Words” by Josie and the Pussycats
“You’ve Come a Long Way Baby” by Josie and the Pussycats
“Backdoor Lover” by DuJour
“Get Off the Internet” by Le Tigre
“Liquid Dreams” by O-Town
“Waste of Time” by the Fabulous Stains
“I Want It That Way” by Too Many Zooz
“Crush on Me” by the Donnas
“High” by Feeder
“Get Down” by B4-4
“Josie and the Pussycats” by Josie and Pussycats