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The Sexist has been obsessively cataloging songs about rape for some time now, but so far we’ve only alighted upon one recent track that’s clearly against assault: the Raveonettes‘ “Boys Who Rape (Shall All Be Destroyed).” I don’t have another anti-rape track for you, but I do have a cover of “Boys Who Rape”—-this time sung by some boys.
Pitchfork has this to say of the cover, courtesy of Brooklyn’s Suckers: “the Brooklyn-based four-piece lend their dark orchestral touch to the song, turning the original ode into an elegy worthy of the equally heavy subject matter.”
Really? Because a few seconds in, the song launches into some sleepy Brian Wilson-esque harmonies and . . . is that a maraca? Then there’s some more dark “aaahing” and some other funny noise-making. (There’s a reason I don’t write for Pitchfork). I’m not against anybody letting some Beach Boys influence sneak into a song about murdering rapists. However, I’m not sure I’d ever choose to equate the “heaviness” of rape with what is a particularly sunny elegy.
Here’s the Raveonettes’ original:
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