NOVEMBER 22, 2023

The original - and still our favorite - Autoextremist logo. 

The AE Quote of the Century: Everybody loves The High-Octane Truth. Until they don't. -WG 

(Cadillac images)

Cadillac has confirmed a fourth vehicle to join its expanding global electric vehicle portfolio (You know, that portfolio, the one that's largely been missing in action. -WG). The OPTIQ will be a luxury compact SUV and act as the entry point for Cadillac’s EV lineup in North America, slotting in below the LYRIQ. Additional details, as well as available features and pricing, will be unveiled next year.

 

(Kia images)

Kia America introduced two new all-electric concepts at the Los Angeles Auto Show: the EV3 (shown in Gray) and EV4 (in Bronze). The Concept EV3 and Concept EV4 "represent contrasting vehicle typologies with a common thread. Like other Kia design studies, the Concept EV3 and Concept EV4 offer visions of potential future products," according to Kia PR minions. The Concept EV4 "represents the purity of the 'Power to Progress' pillar of the Opposites United design philosophy," according to the manufacturer. "Brought to life through a harmonious fusion of confident, geometric diagonal character lines and rich yet technical surfaces, the Concept EV4 represents a new value, approach, customer experience, and typology," Kia's PR minions continued. Editor-in-Chief's Note: Wow, that's a lot of PR spewing. The L.A. Auto Show had a lot of sound and whimpers, signifying pretty much nothing. Subaru introduced a new Forester that is even more forgettable than the current one (shocker). And Lucid showed its Gravity SUV (below), which the assembled motoring press went gaga over, and prompted us to just shrug with boredom. Such is the state of the business right now. -PMD

(newspressUSA)

The Lucid Gravity.

The AE Quote of the Week: 

“He’s listed as day to day, but then again, aren’t we all?” - Vin Scully

The AE Song of the Week: 

Take your baby by the hand
And make her do a high handstand
And take your baby by the heel
And do the next thing that you feel

We were so in phase
In our dance hall days
We were cool on craze
When I, you, and everyone we knew
Could believe, do, and share in what was true
Oh, I said

Dance hall days, love

Take your baby by the hair
And pull her close and there, there, there
And take your baby by the ears
And play upon her darkest fears

We were so in phase
In our dance hall days
We were cool on craze
When I, you, and everyone we knew
Could believe, do, and share in what was true
Oh, I said

Dance hall days, love
Dance hall days
Dance hall days, love

Take your baby by the wrist
And in her mouth an amethyst
And in her eyes two sapphires blue
And you need her and she needs you
And you need her and she needs you
And you need her and she needs you
And you need her and she needs you
And you need her and she needs you

We were so in phase
In our dance hall days
We were cool on craze
When I, you, and everyone we knew
Could believe, do, and share in what was true
Oh, I said

Dance hall days, love
Dance hall days, love
Dance hall days
Dance hall days, love
Whoa, dance hall days

"Dance Hall Days" by Wang Chung from the album "Points On A Curve" (1984).* Written by Darren Costin, Jack Hues and Nicholas Laurence Feldman. Publisher: Sprit Music Group. Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind. Watch the (strange, even for back then) Original Music Video here.  

*Jack Hues of Wang Chung told Eric Greenberg on the Just My Show podcast: "It begins quite innocent: 'take your baby by the hand,' and then the last verse with 'take your baby by the wrist, and in her mouth an amethyst,' it's all a bit more hallucinogenic in a way, how things that start off simple get complex. My dad was a musician, and he had a band that played in an old-fashioned dance hall. I used to play with him in that band, so maybe there's sort of the nostalgia that's in the track. It's all quite real, actually, as far as experiences that I had when I was first starting out playing, and playing in public. Musically, it's that sort of rhythm and that kind of shuffly beat. Technically it's sort of like three against two [laughs], but we're not gonna talk about all that. It's a particular feel that was sort of unusual at the time, I suppose. It was partly inspired by one of the Adam and the Ants tracks, and that's part of the thinking of using Chris Hughes, who produced Adam's Kings of The Wild Frontier album. I think the record company were keen that we sort of met up with him, and Chris and I have been friends ever since that time - Chris works with me on my jazz records that I've made in the last couple of years. It's been one of the most important friendships of my life." Even though they are British, this was Wang Chung's only hit in the UK. After it proved to be a bigger hit in the US and was featured in the film To Live And Die In LA, they decided to ignore the UK market and concentrate on the US. This proved an astute decision as they recorded two more American Top 10 hits, "Everybody Have Fun Tonight" (#2 in 1986) and "Let's Go!" (#9 in 1987), whilst not even recording a minor chart placing in the UK. (Knowledge courtesy of Songfacts.com)

Editor's Note: Click on "Next 1 Entries" at the bottom of this page to see previous issues. - WG