DJ: Th. Metzger

Th. Metzger, one of the 96 immortals, here reveals his genius as a dowser-out of musical hallucinogens.

The Texas-born Ross Sisters (Betsy Ann, Veda Victoria, and Dixie Jewell) were stars in the forties due to their formidable fusion of three-part harmony and contorsion-acrobatics. Grotesque, Sublime, their powers suggest both the sideshow freakery and yogic power. After watching this one lives in a larger, more alarming world.

Lord Vinheteiro, Brazilian comedy pianist and sound engineer, plays Mozart’s Queen of Night aria on the rubber chicken. His expression of unalterable intensity, like Hyancinthe Rigaud’s 1701 portrait of Louis XIV in the background, and indeed the relentless mechanical piano, charge this performance with eerie inanimate comedy. It’s as though Doctor Coppélius had created a stand-up comedy automaton. Equivocal!

The Wellermen revealed the power and fascination of the sea shanty on Tiktok. This is perhaps their most hallucinatory offering.

The Bobocats, Bob Haggart and Roy Bauduc, recorded this signature bass-drums-whistling hit in 1938. It resurfaced on the soundtrack of Scorsese’s Raging Bull.

The 1941 screwball comedy Ball of Fire includes this scene featuring Gene Krupa, whose exuberance electrifies this film onto a spiritual plane.