I Fight Dragons have the “Nintendo power-pop” section of HMV to themselves
Chicago’s I Fight Dragons, like Anamanaguchi, are one of those bands who use Nintendo equipment to create music. Unlike Anamanaguchi, I Fight Dragons create radio-friendly powerpop with their Gameboys and Guitar Hero controllers.
I do wonder if creating this chiptune music using videogame accessories shows even more get-up-and-go in a band - it must be quite tempting to just stay on the couch and play games, no?
I Fight Dragons seem to use the Nintendo stuff as an equal part of the band’s instrumentation, save for the the odd spotlit Gameboy breakdown. Listening to them you don’t get the impression they’ve sacrificed melody for novelty, and their better moments like “Heads Up, Hearts Down” and “The Faster The Treadmill” wouldn’t sound out of place on a Fountains Of Wayne setlist.
They have a merchandise store as well, with t-shirts and accessories available for your delectation. Look:
If you like your superhero schtick, it’s probably right up your street. I’m more concerned with the slightly false impression these snaps give of the band’s overall attractiveness, however. So I’m just going to clear that up.
This is Brian. He’s the lead singer. He’s in the band.
I don’t know who this lady is, but I’m calling her “Miss Thing”. She’s not in the band.
I *think* I can glimpse a bit of this lady’s thigh, which leads me to believe she is a poor naked orphan girl with nothing but an I Fight Dragons t-shirt to keep her warm. In-band status: not.
Here’s Miss Thing again. She’s brought a friend along to double the sass. There is a lady in I Fight Dragons, but I don’t think this is her.
So that’s that cleared up. Don’t you think Brian was very brave to undergo a photoshoot with a bunch of highly-attractive strangers?
You can find I Fight Dragons on (deep breath):
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I originally Tweeted this, but realised it would be more appropriate here…
eww nooooooo! how to make chiptune sound dull and ordinary. HATE the vocals and HATE the drums, yuk yuk yuk :’(
no comparison with Anamanaguchi!
April 15th, 2009 at 4:56 pm
yeah I’m gonna have to say this is fucking trash. way to take a cool subculture and turn it into marketable garbage
April 16th, 2009 at 2:45 am
i have no idea why people seem to be enjoying this. it’s the most superficial, gimmicky, radio-friendly thing i’ve ever seen. totally co-opting an existing subculture.
it’s like there’s some outside force bringing this band up. nothing authentic about it.
April 16th, 2009 at 2:48 am
Well, it depends on your take on radio-friendliness I guess. If that term = bad, then yes, I Fight Dragons are going to have their work cut out when it comes to chiptune purists. But I imagine their sights are set slightly higher than the indie chiptune ghetto.
If they make it they’ll be lambasted as the band who ruined chiptune (i.e. exposed it to new people), but then they’ll also be too rich to care about such quaint concerns.
Subcultures have been co-opted and commericalized since popular music was born, so it’s a bit late to use that as a stick with which to beat bands. Can you tell I gave up on that fight a long time ago?
April 16th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
Yeah I guess, but still this is just kinda “chiptune for people who like bad music”
April 16th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
Hey, it’s an untapped niche!
April 16th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
more untapped niches: watching your loved ones get raped? just food for thought
“everytime i say what i wanna be
someone says thats not how its gonna be
come on baby quit your dreaming
grab your things the train is leaving”
a turd decorated with gimmicks upon gimmicks upon gimmicks plus a good pr firm behind it = success
i’m going to argue that it wont work this time
April 16th, 2009 at 4:50 pm