Kongulo Kab

The Internet Was Made For Stuff Like This.

No, not porn.

Two years ago, Hidden Fruit (Gen Stevens and Chris Pattinson) and Just So Films (Jonny Madderson and Will Evans) came up with an idea that would either be completely brilliant or totally stupid. Hire a London cab, put famous musicians in the back seat and film them performing one song in one take with no editing and no overdubs.

This isn't an idea that can sustain for 60 or 90 minutes, but it makes a perfect 3-5 minute diversion. Ideal for the Internet.

There have now been more than 90 of these Black Cab Sessions (their slogan: One Song, One Take, One Cab), most great examples of the wonderful results you can get from a good idea and a budget in the high single digits. The series trends heavily towards indie rockers (Death Cab for Cutie, the New Pornographers, Okkervil River) but also features some old school rock stars (Brian Wilson, Richard Thompson).

The performances range from giddy to ghastly (there's no room for a full band and nowhere to hide performance weaknesses in a London cab), but many of the performers take a goofy glee in singing from the back seat of a cab driving through busy city streets.

One of the more recent episodes features Iceland's own Hafdis Huld, who seems to be having so much fun (despite being stalked by a crazy street person) that it should be against the law. Here she is singing her ode to Alain Robert (the French skyscraper climber nicknamed "Spiderman") Iceland's #1 hit single "Kongulo":

Hafdis Huld from Black Cab Sessions on Vimeo.

(See the official video for "Könguló" here.)