It is a happy Friday afternoon when I can share something that's as much fun as the delightful bellyaching of the Complaints Choir of Helsinki. (Thanks for the tip go to San Francisco Chronicle columnist Jon Carroll.)
I know what you're thinking: "Oh, no. Not another YouTube link! Why must I click on links?" But there's just something goofy, uplifting and even cathartic about hearing singers belt out their beefs in harmony. Don't take my word for it. See for yourself.
Thanks to the handy subtitles, we learn that the Finns' musical lamentations include, the perennial: "Christmas season starts earlier every year" and the modern "People only take a stand in sms-forums." There's even a veiled dig at the Swedish furniture-maker IKEA: "When you buy furniture, all you get is a pile of boards."
The Helsinki complainers are not the only musical grousers out there. Apparently, griping in song is something of a global mini-trend. See: Complaints Choirs Worldwide. Another highlight, this performance of the Complaints Choir of Birmingham, which includes the winning lines "I want my money back. My job's like a cul-de-sac. And the bus is too infrequent at 6:30. Why don't they pay me more? Life was good before. And I'm thirsty."
If there was a Complaints Choir of Broadsheet, what would your complaints be? Register them in letters. The Finns can get us started with their gloomy observation that "Women are still paid less than men."
Now, remember to sing from your diaphragm, project and don't hold back.
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