History Music / KilroyWasHere

# "Don't Let It End" (2:22)

* AllThereInTheManual: The premise and the entire plot is described in the liner notes to the album. Between the opening "Mr. Roboto" (in which Kilroy reveals himself to Jonathan), and "Don't Let It End (Reprise)" (in which Kilroy and Jonathan vow to revive rock and roll), ''nothing happens'': the other songs just describe the world of ''Kilroy'' from the point of view of the three main characters. Except for "Don't Let It End", a love ballad that has nothing to do with the story ''at all''.

* GratuitousJapanese: ''Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto, Mata au hi made. Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto, himitsu wo shiritai...''
* GroinAttack: "What NOT To Do To Your Roboto."
* JapanTakesOverTheWorld
* LargeHam: James Young during 'Heavy Metal Poisoning' during the concerts. Might even qualify as HamAndCheese.
* LuddWasRight: "Mr. Roboto":

** WebVideo/ToddInTheShadows called out the hypocrisy of this line, coming as it did from a band whose lead singer played an electronic keyboard as his primary instrument.

* SubliminalSeduction: Subverted. Right before "Heavy Metal Poisoning", there's an obvious backmasked message. Played backwards, it's the Latin phrase [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annuit_cœptis Annuit cœptis, Novus ordo seclorum]], part of the Seal of the United States on a $1 bill, and roughly translated as "God approves of our undertakings/ a new order of the ages." This is likely in response to accusations that "Snowblind", a song from ''Paradise Theatre'', had "backwards Satanic messages" on it.
* SuckECheeses: Righteous' museum (formerly the Paradise Theater) has shades of this, complete with an animatronic Kilroy band "murdering" an MMM protestor.
* ThemeNaming: Robert Orin Charles Kilroy (FunWithAcronyms), Jonathan Chance, Dr. Righteous
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: The story takes place in the future, but not a very distant one.
* UnroboticReveal: The main point of "Mr. Roboto".
* VillainSong: "Heavy Metal Poisoning", "Double Life" are both from the antagonist's viewpoint. "Double Life" is a VillainousBSOD song where Righteous realizes what a terrible hypocrite he is, but feels he's too far in to dig his way out.
* YellowPeril: The slant-eyed, Japanese-built "Mr. Robotos" are an obvious racial caricature, and probably more than a little racist. At the time of the album's release, they were likely meant as a commentary on Japanese car-makers putting Americans out of work.
** In the accompanying minifilm, one of the prisoners in the eating area mocks a Roboto that his "mother's a Toyota."

!!!"Tropes Were Here":

TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture, MoralGuardians outlaw rock and roll. Enforcing the new law, a riot breaks out at a concert by the famous "Kilroy" at the [[ShoutOut Paradise Theatre]], someone dies, and Kilroy is [[FrameUp framed]] as a murderer. He is imprisoned, guarded by ''[[RobotMaid Mr. Robotos]]'', mass-produced menial-labor robots. Kilroy breaks out, disguising himself in the body of a Roboto he has overpowered. Using a "rock code" graffiti, he leads a protegé, Jonathan Chance, to meet him in the Paradise Theater, now a museum to rock-and-roll depravity. And then [[CutShort it ends]].

Following on the success of the ConceptAlbum ''Paradise Theater'' (and three multi-platinum albums before that), the ''Kilroy'' album and tour were far more ambitious, with a pre-concert mini-film that set up the story, scripted dialogue and choreography in concert, and specific roles for each of the band members. But instead of taking it to the next level, the band [[JumpingTheShark jumped the shark]], breaking up and never going multi-platinum again. Tommy Shaw, on an episode of ''{{Behind the Music}}'' tells of performing the rock opera in Houston, Texas at the Astrodome, while on a double bill tour with Ted Nugent. Shaw recalled how Nugent (the opener on the tour) did a wild stage show with flaming arrows, and general mayhem we've come to expect from him and his group. And how "I've (Shaw) got to go out there in front of that rowdy-ass crowd and say 'But Kilroy, what about, the young people in the world?' I thought "I'M GONNA DIE! I'M GONNA GET KILLED IN TEXAS!"

** ToddInTheShadows called out the hypocrisy of this line, coming as it did from a band whose lead singer played a synthesizer as his primary instrument.

* VillainSong: "Heavy Metal Poisoning", "Double Life" are both from the antagonist's viewpoint.

* BookBurning: In the mini-film at the start, but with records and guitars. The concert from the 'Caught in the Act' video featured prop guitars being snapped over the Pannozzos' knees, while JY fed his (prop) to an MMM 'Guitar Shredder'.

* ThemeNaming: Robert Orrin Charles Kilroy (FunWithAcronyms), Jonathan Chance, Dr. Righteous

* RockOpera: Though given the total non-advancement of the story through the songs, it might just be a very detailed ConceptAlbum

** In the accompanying minifilm, one of the prisoners in the eating area mocks a Roboto that his "mother's a Toyota".

* LuddWasRight: In "Mr. Roboto":
--> The problem's plain to see
--> Too much technology
--> Machines to save our lives
--> Machines dehumanize

* ThePowerOfRock

* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture
* VillainSong: "Heavy Metal Poisoning", "Double Life"

The story has many similarities to Music/FrankZappa's ''Joe's Garage'': both feature robot-filled futures with moral overlords who hate rock-and-roll and throw the rocker protagonist in prison. Zappa's work is distinguished by having trickier time signatures, as well as much more [[{{Robosexual}} gay sex with robots]]. You could almost mistake ''Joe's Garage'' for a parody of ''Kilroy Was Here'', but for the fact that ''Joe's'' came out '''four years earlier'''.

The RockOpera by Music/{{Styx}}, not the WorldWarII era BathroomStallGraffiti.

The story has many similarities to FrankZappa's ''Joe's Garage'': both feature robot-filled futures with moral overlords who hate rock-and-roll and throw the rocker protagonist in prison. Zappa's work is distinguished by having trickier time signatures, as well as much more [[{{Robosexual}} gay sex with robots]]. You could almost mistake ''Joe's Garage'' for a parody of ''Kilroy Was Here'', but for the fact that ''Joe's'' came out '''four years earlier'''.

''Kilroy Was Here has examples of:''

* ThePowerOfRock

* YellowPeril: The slant-eyed, Japanese-built "Mr. Robotos" are an obvious racial caricature, and probably more than a little racist. At the time of the album's release, they were likely meant as a commentary on Japanese car-makers putting Americans out of work.

The RockOpera by Music/{{Styx}}, not the WorldWarII era BathroomStallGraffiti

* BrokenBase: It got real hard to be a Styx fan about a month after this album came out. To be fair, the rise of new wave displaced the other arena rock bands too (REO Speedwagon, Journey, etc.). But those bands didn't do it to themselves with a single album.

Following on the success of the ConceptAlbum ''Paradise Theater'' (and three multi-platinum albums before that), the ''Kilroy'' album and tour were far more ambitious, with a pre-concert mini-film that set up the story, scripted dialogue and choreography in concert, and specific roles for each of the band members. But instead of taking it to the next level, the band [[JumpingTheShark jumped the shark]], breaking up and never going multi-platinum again.

TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture, MoralGuardians outlaw rock and roll. Enforcing the new law, a riot breaks out at a concert by the famous "Kilroy" at the [[ShoutOut Paradise Theatre]], someone dies, and Kilroy is [[FrameUp framed]] as a murderer. He is imprisoned, guarded by ''[[RobotMaid Mr. Robotos]]'', mass-produced menial-labor robots. Kilroy breaks out, disguising himself in the body of a Roboto he has overpowered. Using a "rock code" graffiti, he leads a protogé, Jonathan Chance, to meet him in the Paradise Theater, now a museum to rock-and-roll depravity. And then [[CutShort it ends]].