Fun. "Some Nights" [2012]

Strictly for those who feel Freddie Mercury was too aggressively hetero, Fun. is perhaps the most torturously full-of-itself group of smart-ass brats ever formed outside of Britain. Clearly from the "kitchen-sink" school of musical production as other waste-of-time bands like Arcade Fire, Fun. assembles pedestrian progressions drenched in shudder-inducing pomposity, and then layers Nate Ruess' ball-pinchingly high vocals over the top. It's enough to make Death Cab for Cutie beg to be driven over the side of the bridge at last. Unfortunately for the future of contemporary music, Fun. has already found success writing songs solely for 30-second commercials, and this trend shows no sign of abetting. But nothing if not self-aware, they called themselves "Fun-with-a-period." Yeah, that's these guys.