In the music world, heavy metal comes in many different forms. There’s black metal, death metal — and even a subgenre inspired by Ned Flanders.
Yes, Ned Flanders — the ultra-religious, clean-cut character on TV’s “The Simpsons,” known for his cheery “Hi-Diddly-Ho” and “Okily Dokily” catchphrases that are bemoaned by next-door neighbor Homer Simpson. The cheeky genre’s name is Nedal, a sound coined and — for now — solely produced by Phoenix band Okilly Dokilly.
Okilly Dokilly harnesses the abrasive sonic elements of sludge metal, akin to early Black Sabbath and Alice in Chains, but eschews doom-and-gloom lyrics in favor of quotes from the neighborly, overly friendly Flanders. As it turns out, a “Simpsons” metal band can indeed procure a large, dedicated fan base, and no one is more surprised than the lead singer himself, Head Ned.
“When we first started the band, we didn’t think we’d have much of an audience,” says Head Ned, who co-founded the quintet in 2015. But within a week after Okilly Dokilly released some demo tracks on Bandcamp that same year, the tunes garnered roughly a million streams and the band’s newly created Facebook page amassed 25,000 fans.
The concept for Okilly Dokilly started as something of a gag. Head Ned wanted to form a metal band, but under the guise of something more playful and totally divergent from the genre’s brutal trappings. The group’s latest self-release, “Howdilly Twodilly,” the follow-up to 2016 debut album “Howdilly Doodilly,” is a testament to how this off-kilter juxtaposition comes together in a harmonious way. All of the record’s 11 songs are packed with references to and sayings from the God-loving “Simpsons” character, yet they paint Flanders in a much different light.
“One thing that I look for when finding quotes is that if Ned Flanders says something out of context, how heavy metal is it?” Head Ned says. To find quotes for the new record, Head Ned went back and watched the first 10 seasons of the long-running animated series before writing the songs.
One example is the song “When the Comet Gets Here,” a nod to a Season 6 episode in which Flanders hides in his homemade bomb shelter after learning that a comet is set to decimate Springfield. The shelter becomes overcrowded when more townsfolk discover its existence. After being nominated by Homer to leave due to overcapacity, Flanders willingly agrees to go, and tells his son Todd to “shoot Daddy if he tries to get back in.” Okilly Dokilly spun the quote in a way that makes Flanders sound much more menacing.
Complementing the music is the band’s complete dedication to looking the part. All five members, including drummer Dread Ned, guitarist Shred Ned, bassist Bed Ned and keyboardist Zed Ned, sport Flanders’ hallmark green sweater, crisp pink polo, round glasses and, of course, his neatly trimmed mustache onstage. At shows, their fans often rise to the occasion and wear the same costume. Okilly Dokilly refers to these superfans as “Bonus Neds.”
“We did a tour in the U.K. last year, and in London we had 25 people all dressed as Ned Flanders,” Head Ned recounts. “The mosh pit was a heavy shade of green, and a bunch of the fans were having a hard time telling who was in the band and who was just a fan dressed as Ned Flanders!”
Okilly Dokilly has also caught the attention of “Simpsons” producers, who featured the band’s video for “White Wine Spritzer” during the credits of this past Sunday’s episode. Once the band finishes the U.S. leg of its tour, Okilly Dokilly will head to the other side of the globe to win over more fans.
“We’re thinking of possibly going to Australia since there’s another ‘Simpsons’-themed band, Dr. Colossus, that we’d like to tour with,” Head Ned says. “That’s our goal — to take ‘Howdilly Twodilly’ and spread it as far as we can.”
