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| "Coin-Operated Boy" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by The Dresden Dolls | ||||
| from the album The Dresden Dolls | ||||
| Released | December 13, 2004 | |||
| Genre | Dark cabaret | |||
| Length | 4:46 | |||
| Label | Roadrunner | |||
| Songwriter | Amanda Palmer | |||
| The Dresden Dolls singles chronology | ||||
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"Coin-Operated Boy" is a single by The Dresden Dolls duo, taken from the self-titled debut album The Dresden Dolls . It was produced by Martin Bisi and released on December 13, 2004, by Roadrunner Records. "Coin-Operated Boy" was written by Amanda Palmer. The song makes heavy use of staccato, and includes instruments such as a toy piano.
Palmer expounds on the many advantages of an artificial and subhuman partner, over real ones, in a tick-tock rhythm reminiscent of automata or clockwork. The song has broad overtones of lonely narcissism, and a desire for intimate loyalty and affection without personal sacrifice or vulnerability. [1] Caroline Bologna of The Huffington Post writes that the song "suggests themes of masturbation as it explores the idea of the pleasure of love without the 'complications' of a real partner". [2]
In Australia, the song was ranked #12 on Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2004.
It has been parodied and used in advertisements and products. [3] [4] [5] The song was featured in the third episode of the DC Studios animated series Creature Commandos , titled "Cheers to the Tin Man". [6]
It is in The Dresden Dolls Companion .