This New Zealand duo dignify the term “novelty band,” whether spoofing Pet Shop Boys or decrying the high cost of sneakers made by “little slave kids” in a socially conscious soul anthem. Divorced from their HBO series, the songs have room to stretch a little, only occasionally sacrificing context. The “Space Oddity” send-up (“Bowie”) tacks on a “Let’s Dance” coda, and the silly Language 101 lyrics of the jaunty “Foux du Fafa” could inspire Francophilia even without the TV show’s French New Wave milieu.
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