At the Library in May
May 1, 2013
Andrew J. Cantrelle
May 2, 2013
Like most of my other articles this one starts in a similar way, with me in a downtown Houma bar, listening to the best original bands that our fair city has to offer. It’s Saturday night at the Boxer and the Barrel. I’m listening to a bunch of NOLA bands when all of a sudden the stage is overtaken with what I can only call my childhood. The sounds are a constant reminder of my nerdish youth.
The three-person band that has captured every bit of my attention is known as Atomic Powerbot. The only explanation that I can give to those who wonder how this music sounds is it’s Your Childhood. I was born in the ‘80s; therefore I played a good bit of video games that came out while the medium gained notoriety. One thing that I always admired was the sophistication in which the soundtracks of these games were carried out.
I sat down with Cory Bergeron of Atomic Powerbot, and asked him some questions about the validity of his new project, compared to what he has done in the past and is currently doing. The first question I had was about his and the other members commitment to the band.
“We’re all here to be challenged to make music that others just won’t make,” he responded. “We chose this type of music because it’s a challenge. There are artists that have only had this medium to sit down with and create and they’ve made some epic sounding stuff. The challenge comes when you want and try to play this music live. It’s really complicated, but it leads to more practice and greater understanding of scale and all around music.”
The band of three spouts off eight-bit hits like they were of top-40 fame. If you were any sort of gamer in the ‘90s, you could recall the tracks as fast as lightening. Suddenly music from consoles like the NES and super NES were appealing to music and game lovers alike. The show starts with a crowd favorite and is followed quickly by gamer hits such as Castlevania, Punch Out, Zelda, Mega Man, Metroid and Marble Madness. Anyone in the crowd that has played one of these games immediately relives the struggle and intense fun they had conquering each one.
The band has ideas for a CD in the works. The end product will be rough and will be made for the fans.
“All of the music that is played is for the fans,” Bergeron said. “So if we were to make a CD, it’s easy to say that it would be made for the pure enjoyment of our dedicated fans. Our main influences are the people who played the games and have an appreciation for the music, and ourselves whom saw it as a challenge to learn this type of music and attempt to play it live.”
The only thing that I can add is that they more than successfully pull of this music. It sounds as if it was played from the Nintendo cartridge itself. As funny as that sounds, it is meant to be an amazing complement.
The members of the band are a who’s who of the Houma music scene. On drums is the always powerful Jon Kelpsch. The keys, and all-around video game sound of the band, is contributed by Jordan Doucet. Lastly, on bass guitar is the one and only, beast, Mr. Cory Bergeron. Together these musicians make up the best eight-bit band that Louisiana has to offer.
The guys have plans to bring more fan favorites to life in upcoming shows. The band is currently working on such tracks as Skate or Die, Contra, Battle Toads, Ninja Gaiden, and Double Dragons. All of these 8-bit masterpieces have touched each member of Atomic Powerbot in a different way.
The band has been together for close to a year, and they plan on being together for a long time to come. This music is universal: No matter who you are, you’ve more than likely heard these tracks and grown to love them without even knowing what you’re listening to. This was my case, which I believed was opened to the public. I walked into the show not knowing what to expect, and I walked out loving and knowing every minute of music that I know I couldn’t get anywhere else but Houma.
If you’re a fan of video games from the ‘80s and ‘90s, then you are bound to love Atomic Powerbot. They play music that is recognizable and challenging to learn. The music that has been made on 8-bit recordings is some of the best in the world. I can only commend these hard-working musicians on bringing it to a stage near us. Please make your way out to support the Houma music scene by listening to these and other Houma artists.
Atomic Powerbot uses drums, bass and keys to recreate the sounds of Nintendo games made popular in the ’80s and ’90s. The Houma band is must see, says columnist Alex Martin.
