Radio Free Hipster Ep. 86: The Ugly Truth

For this edition of Radio Free Hipster, I've decided to forego the voice modulation process I've applied to each and every one of my previous podcasts to this point. This decision was not an easy one, primarily because I've used it as a way to keep my family safe from the evils lurking on the webternets.

But this need for safety has turned to fear, and if X and Twiggy ever expect to become world class champions in order to win my love, then I had better start toughening them up. I've even gone as far as to put them on this very podcast, thus giving the stalker and ne'er-do-well community a proverbial "bring it on" gesture, my fists firmly placed at my sides.

What you'll find within, besides the courage that has lived inside you all along, are songs not chosen to placate a theme, but rather a roster of the finest audio clips meant to join together as an almost unholy alliance (due mostly to the involvement of Schaffer The Darklord). Bask as these most heroic of tunes provide you with buffs and much needed healing as you battle the harsh realities of day to day life. Dragons. Corrupt Armies. Mowing the Lawn. All will bow before the might of this podcast!

Take charge my minions! Take to the skies and rain down upon our enemies with such vengeance they will question the very Gods themselves!

Also comment if you like. Thanks! 

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 86: The Ugly Truth [hosting provided by Antisoc] Size: 53.4 MB Running Time: 58:25

Show Notes:

Intro: Z's first intro

Actual Intro: Baddd Spellah - "Radio Free Hipster Theme (feat. Beefy)"
The best part of the show. 

Z's 1st interlude: "GeekDad Told Me"
Meet the crew. It's a family affair 

Track 1: Shael Riley - "Music Of My Groin"
X insisted on this one. I can't tell him no. He looks like a tiny me! 

Track 2: MC Frontalot - "Your Friend Wil"
I have never once been called a dick. I must not have great friends. 

Track 3: Kirby Krackle - "Ring Capacity"
Oooooh! It's about Green Lantern! I get it now. 

Track 4: Dual Core - "The Game"
This was based on my life in the early 2000s. "Z" isn't my real name. It used to be Victor. 

Z's 2nd interlude: "That Orgy Was A Mistake"
Including a fifth would have been nice. 

Track 5: mc chris - "Awesome Fucker"
I have to assume this song is also based on my life. 

Track 6: Tenacious D - "Double Team"
I don't know why, but this song always reminds me of Just Another Lazy Podcast. You should go check that out. 

Track 7: Weezer - "Undone (The Sweater Song)"
Someone told me this song was a metaphor for a relationship. I thought it was a cool song about sweaters. I f'n hate metaphors! 

Track 8: The Lonely Island - "Metaphor"
These guys have mastered the art of subtlety. Truly wonderful. I f'n love metaphors! 

Z's 3rd interlude: "Huge Boobs"
After all these years I finally break down and get way honest, yo. 

Track 9: MC Lars - "This Gigantic Robot Kills"
Ska is not dead. It's been lost in time fighting a dragon to save us from the Negas'rife headed for Earth. 

Track 10: Futuristic Sex Robotz - "Hey, Ladies"
I put this in here because I like the intro right after Lars' song about killer robots. 

Track 11: Optimus Rhyme - "Calm Down"
All joking aside this is a gem, usually hidden to those not in the know. 

Track 12: Schaffer The Darklord - "Pixilated Vixen"
I too would totally bone a videogame lady. 

Z's 4th interlude: "Giant Shoes I Could Never Fill"
My son does not like Beefy. He is grounded. 

Track 13: Wordburglar - "Hermaphromic"
Due to Canadia's honor system in the prisons, The SJ can still tour. So that's good for him. Bad for frightened words. 

Track 14: MPFM - "Kool-Aid"
Once I level up a bit more I'll cast a resurrect on MPFM. So fear not. 

Z's final interlude: "I Just Want To Give Z Pokemon!"
The truth finally comes out. We really love you Z! 

Track 15: Beefy - "Uncanny [f. MC Lars]"
Coming up on With Sprinkles. Beat by Mustin. Sex appeal by Beefy.

***SPOILER WARNING***

You fools! Little did you know that the man you thought was Z was merely the cunning guise of none other than Beef Thompson himself! How could you have been to easily misled? Your lives are now forfeit!

This has been an April Fools podswap! Oh snap! There's no possible way you saw this coming! Jones, Steve, and I really enjoyed wasting your time today. Please note that anything negative we said in the podcast we didn't mean (except in the case of Jones McFly. It's not that everything Jones says is true, it's just hard to separate the fiction from the mega-fiction.) So thank you boys and girls, and don't forget to check back next week for your usual dose of Z. Also check out the podcast he did for us over at Just Another Lazy Podcast!

The Darkness Grows as all Light Dies

This week marks the triumphant (we hope) conclusion of DC's Blackest Night crossover. You know; the one where we discovered that the Green Lantern Corps is only a single heroic hue of the cosmic Skittles Rainbow.

To mark this auspicious occasion, our friends from The Nerdy Show have launched another Song Fight! style competition.

Between now and April 30th, you are encouraged to write, record and submit a song about the Blackest Night event for a chance to have your song featured on played on the Nerdy Show's forthcoming "Blackest Night Song Fight" podcast, a $100 comic book shopping spree and the chance to be the opening act at the 2010 Nerdapalooza pre-party!

Peep the specifics:

The Challenge:

Compose an original song about some aspect of DC’s Blackest Night. It can be in any genre and any style. There have been a lot of tie-in books to the event, and the plot line has been building up for years now – so needless to say there’s a lot of material and a lot of angles to come at this. Ska, techno remixes, folk rock, death metal, chiptunes, gangsta rap – anything, even an instrumental can work. The possibilities are infinite.

The Prizes:

1st Place: $100 shopping spree on A Comic Shop’s Online Store and the opportunity to kick off Nerdapalooza 2010 by performing YOUR Blackest Night song at the A Comic Shop pre-party (headlined in 2009 by Schaffer the Darklord).

2nd Place: A copy of the Eisner-nominated Atomic Robo Volume 1 Graphic Novel signed by author and Nerdy Show host, Brian Clevinger, an original 1984 Super Powers Hal Jordan action figure from the collection of Aaron Haaland (the artist/writer of Nerdy Strip), a Nerdy Show Amber Lamp Corps shirt and cap, and both the 2008 and 2009 Nerdapalooza albums.

3rd Place: A copy of the currently- ongoing Atomic Robo Volume 4, issue 1 signed by author and Nerdy Show host, Brian Clevinger, the 2008 and 2009 Nerdapalooza posters, and a Nerdy Show Amber Lamp shirt.

Upon announcing the winners, all submissions will be hosted on nerdyshow.com for listening/ downloading. 1st, 2nd, & 3rd place winners as well as note-worthy runners up will be played during a forthcoming episode of Nerdy Show.

There are a few other stipulations, of course.

Submissions must be original, Blackest Night-themed compositions of no more than 4 minutes in length. Audio files are to be submitted at a bitrate of at least 128kbps, and the related email message must include your name/handle, song title and any relevant notes.

So give your audio tribute to the Care Bears various Lantern Corps some thought, and feel free to hit up contest@nerdyshow.com with any additional questions or comments.

Sex Bob-omb

By now you've all seen the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World trailer. Multiple times, I'll wager.

Pretty awesome, innit? I know I'm excited.

What's more exciting is that the Former Fat Boys are holding a little contest related to the film.

From now until April 17th, fans are asked to promote the band's new single "7 Evil Exes" via Twitter. In a very particular manner.

Copy and paste the following tweet as many times as you like between now and then for a chance to win some pretty sweet prizes:

@edgarwright @nigelgod PUT @formerfatboys song “7 Evil Exes” on Scott Pilgrim soundtrack! Listen HERE: http://bit.ly/9VZSJA #ffbvsworld

I'll let FFB explain the specifics:

Edgar Wright (@edgarwright) = the director of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (and such classics as Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz)
Nigel Godrich (@nigelgod) = arguably the most famous music producer in the world. cough Radiohead cough.

Make sure to include #ffbvsworld, that's how we're keeping track of the entries. Tell your friends, post a link to formerfatboys.com/scottpilgrim on your Facebook as well. Enter as many times as you want. It'd be insane to get this to be a trending topic.

Prizes:
-Posters
-Rocky Loves Emily (Our First CD)
-Roostledoodledoo (Our Ringtone Album)
-Wii Wiish You A Merry Christmas (Our Christmas Album)
-I'm A Dinosaurus, Hard Corey, Barack Out With Your Cock Out, and Former Fat Boys logo T-Shirts
-The Enormous Adventures of the Guys Gone Wild (Our sketch comedy DVD)
-$157 Cash Grand Prize

BONUS PRIZES THAT CAN BE UNLOCKED WITH ACHIEVEMENTS:

If your tweet is retweeted by @edgarwright or @nigelgod, you will instantly unlock a prize of $207.

If we get notice from @nigelgod and @edgarwright that they're checking out the song it will unlock a prize of $207.

If the song makes it into the movie by some magic luck, we'll give one winner $777.

So there you go. Help the Former Fat Boys promote their new joint and maybe, just maybe worm their way on the Scott Pilgrim soundtrack. You'll be glad you did.

The Sound

This site is all about nerd music.

Wait, kids, there's even more earth-shattering declarations ahead! ;)

Seriously, though, I spend a good chunk of my free time seeking out, reviewing and promoting nerd art not because it's fun (although it is) or lucrative (which it assuredly isn't), but because it is my passion. That tiny intersection of music and nerdery is the cozy little place I call home. It is my hobbit hole.

I try to invite the rest of you around as often as I possible because I love the company and because I know that your share that passion.

The problem is I am only one man. A tiny man with big responsibilities that lie well outside this particular stratum. As such, you typically get what's left, what little scraps of time that I can devote to writing and researching and recording. Often that's not a lot.

Thankfully, there are others who share my noble mission. There's the Rhyme Torrents community, OverClocked ReMix, the Nerdapalooza crew, EMPulse and Scrub Club, not to mention my blogging brethren at sites like Game Music 4 All and Wizrocklopedia. But, just like me, their time and resources are sorely limited.

But what if there was a way that we could all chip in? What if there was a dedicated place where artists could share music, fans could discover new acts and everyone connect on their own?

That's exactly the project that's been suggested by my friend Snipeyhead.

I think you all know Snipe. I've spoken of her a number of times here at the blog, and she is a veritable fixture on the nerdier side of Twitter.

She recently outlined her idea for a literal nerd music community, a place that's essentially a finely-tuned last.fm or t61 just for us. A place where nerd artists can share their songs, stories and shop links, and where listeners can discover new shit and share their thoughts.

Here’s an overview of planned features for the user:

• one-stop shop (literally) for all manner of geeky music
• artists are searchable by name, sub-genre, etc
• user-ratings help guide new visitors towards the best music, even if that music isn’t well-known (yet)
• commenting/feedback options (maybe)
• callout area for newest music, new artists, and top rated

Overview of features for the artists:

• bio area obviously
• links back to your website/myspace/facebook/twitter/etc
• links to buy on your own site, amazon, itunes, cdbaby, etc
• flash player to play all or samples of your tracks – this will include an mp3 upload option, or you can link back to your own-hosted mp3s
• import your show schedule RSS feed for display on your profile. If you don’t have one just for shows, an admin interface to add them is likely
• generated RSS feed for each artist that aggregates your blog posts, show schedules, new tracks added, etc.
• ability to copy+paste links to your YouTube vids for inline display
• widget to put on your own websites (if you want?) for your visitors to vote you up on the site
• generated “become a fan” functionality to tie into your facebook fan page
• possible option to auto-truncate songs in flash player so you can offer partial samples without having to cut a separate track

Snipe, who is the consummate coder girl, is looking from input regarding the project, so please proceed to her blog to check out the deets. (Important: The password for the previous link is nerdcore.) You can also check out a wireframe mock-up to give you an idea of where it's going.

I know a lot of us have kicked around the concept of a full-on nerd music storehouse, but Snipe genuinely has the chops to pull a huge undertaking like this off. All she needs from you is your suggestions, and, of course, your kind attention.

Nerd News in Brief

I'm actually preparing to mail off the first round of Hipster, please! bumper stickers next week. (Well, those and also one much-delayed CD!)

I had planned to include a little something extra for you early adopters: ultra-limited edition badges. Not just any old pinbacks, mind you, but HP buttons emblazoned with the mighty d20.

Unfortunately, they were nicked by some random passerby. Or possibly an unscrupulous FedEx guy. :(

For the life of me, I can't imagine why anyone but me would want 50 Hipster, please! badges!

• Do the Donkey Kong: Our friends at OverClocked Remix have just released another one of their astounding game music projects. Donkey Kong Country 2: Serious Monkey Business is 3 discs of banana-collecting fury, and boasts tracks from VGM legend virt and the game's original composer David Wise. Oh, and it's free. So get on that shit!
• Shat-talkin': There are some questions that are of great, almost cosmic importance to all mankind. One such example concerns whether or not William Shatner wears a rug. And one brave blogger seeks to uncover the truth.
• Those Were the Days: On the subject of Trek, Church found this post from Moviefone in which they examine some silent 8mm footage from the 1975 Chicago Star Trek Convention. He also found this fantastic set of insider Trek photos. Get your nostalgia on. 
• Scotty Needs Brains: Also from Church comes news of another literary mash-up from Quirk Books. Night of the Living Trekkies finds a convention floor overrun by flesh-eating ghouls. Think of it as a tribute to nerd survivalists. Failing that, hope it's a better read than Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.
• Needs More Squash: And on the topic of the undead, here's a song about Plants vs. Zombies. Because music aids photosynthesis.
• Undatable? That's Debatable: Apparently roleplayers don't date or have sex. Which means my children… aren't really mine?
• Baby Booties: And since I've invoked the subject of youngins, let me pause to congratulate Captain Dan Dolan (of Scurvy Crew fame) on the recent birth of his son! But take that patch off his eye, Dan. It's just confusing the lad.
• Girls on Film: Also let me congratulate my homegirl Eye-Shuh the OmegaBat, who was this week featured on her local Fox affiliate's news show in a bit about gamer girls. Okay, so maybe the piece was actually about the abysmal GameCrush service and the real lady gamers thing was just a tack-on. Still, Eye-Shuh was on TV. That's the important part.
• Random Access: Mega Ran has once again found himself on the receiving end of some good press. Spinner caught up with him at SXSW for a nice sit-down, and you can also read about him in this month's Nintendo Power. (The latter of which, it bears mentioning, was written by my journalistic homey Nathan Meunier.)
• Chesticles: Another cat who got some much-deserved SXSW love was the great Jesse Dangerously. Peep this feature to learn Jesse's favorite childhood cartoon and to get some hot topless Canadian MC action.
• Marathon Man: Marc with a C will be playing Stardust Video in Orlando, FL on Saturday, April 3rd. It's a free, all ages event, and the plan is to stretch it into one of his old style "marathon shows" (of Wikipedia fame). Make plans to attend if you're in the area, and request "You've Got This Curse" on my behalf.
• For the Win: And mid-month, don't miss the mc chris goes to hell cd release party at Comix in NYC. This gig is made even more interesting by the fact that, if the event page is to be believed, it marks mc's first attempt at stand-up.
• The Final Countdown: In other new album news, MC Frontalot's Zero Day is set for a proper release on April 6th. You can, however beat Dame Time by pre-ordering right the fuck now, which entitles you to instant downloads of the whole album. Consequently, you can also snag an early copy at PAX East. If, that is, you are sufficiently bold.
• Sneak a Peak: Not to be outdone by Church's earlier contributions, my friend Matt came through this week with news of a brand new nerd culture outlet: Geek Peek Post. Give it a peak (peek?) for some preliminary posts on nerdcore, geeky TV and general dorkiness.
• Nerd Ink – Muppets Edition: And this round of nerd ink, also provided by Matt, features the most epic Doctor Teeth and the Electric Mayhem tat I have ever seen! An admittedly narrow field, of course, but still a phenomenal piece of work.
• His Feet are Longfellows: Much love to poetry geek Radames Ortiz for pimping my site/show out on a recent edition of The PoetTech Podcast. Give is a listen for more info on his current collaboration with electronic musician Jonathan Jindra.
• Phone Home: Also on the electronica front, the venerable Doctor Popular has released some information concerning his current musical project. The tentatively entitled Beeps & Smudges will feature a number of notable contributors and is being composed chiefly via the iPhone version of Nanoloop!
• Fully Functional: And speaking of podcasts, Sci Fi Songs' John Anealio has just announced that he and author Patrick Hester are hard at work on a new project called the Functional Nerds Podcast. Give it a listen.
• The Air up There: Taking us out of this week is an excellent solo piano rendition of Air Man's theme from Mega Man 2. It's performed by Rob Kovacs of progressive indie band Return of Simple. And it is ridiculously awesome.

Something that is Not PAX East

I know I'm supposed to be all excited about PAX East this weekend, and, truth be told, I am. Sure, I'm not going, which is kind of a pisser, but a bunch of my fellow GeekDads are gonna be in attendance as will nerdy friends like Nagini, so I feel like I'll at least be there in spirit.

Oh, and as an aside, free sticker for anyone who manages to namedrop me during the Geek Parenting Panel! ;)

But, back to the topic at hand, while we've all been buzzing about PAX for months, I just hit upon an event also going down this weekend that you may have missed. Texas nerdlingers are probably well aware of Comicpalooza, running from March 26th-28th at the George R. Brown Convention in Houston, but it's also of note that Saturday the 27th will see a Nerdcore show at nearby Joystix arcade and bar.

It's all a part of Houston's new homegrown nerd culture site Space City Nerd's big kick-off party, and it features a performance by Scrub Club's magnificent Dr. Awkward and the return of the unforgettable MC Router. Also on tap are artists Jim Mahfood (AKA: my hero) and David Mack making with the geeky art LIVE!

Oh, and free-play classic arcade cabinets. You can't forget that shit.

So essentially there's something for everyone. And if you're a regular reader of this blog there's probably lots of stuff to get excited about.

The show's a scant 10 bones, but it is a 21+ affair, so plan accordingly. There's also a Facebook event page you can consult for further details.

Most importantly, if you go take some pictures for me!

Bumper Stickers, Pokemon, Podcasts & You

Earlier this year I talked a bit about trying to bring a stronger visual element to Hipster, please!, to include more images and videos and eye candy to help mellow the acerbic cocktail that is my writing. And while this is all well and good, it occurs to me that I also need to expand in another direction.

I'm talking community here, people. Interactivity.

You nerds have been supporting me for at least as long I've been supporting you, so I'm desperately trying to, y'know, put myself out there. To kick our little exchanges up a notch.

To that end I have a trio of (hopefully) interesting points I'd like to touch on. If, of course, you'll be so kind as to indulge me.

Who Wants Stuff?

First and foremost, I have – at the urgings of at least a couple of you – ordered some more bumper stickers. I don't really do merch, as such. I find it a little distasteful for someone who provides such a paltry service as me to pimp wares, but I know some of y'all like this stuff, so here it is.

This time around, the "Nerd music. Nerd culture. Nerd life." has instead been replaced with my newest semi-ironic battle cry "Geek is something you do. Nerd is something you live."

Does this mean that I've given up my previous position on the geek = nerd argument? Not in the slightest. It simply means that, as my buddy Glenn pointed out, I love to bastardize quotes from the great KRS-One.

You may procure some of these stickers in the traditional manner: just use the Paypal donate button to your right to send me as much or as little scratch as you feel led to take the sting out of shipping and/or support the site. (And, as I am never one to overlook the downtrodden, if you're too broke to donate feel free to holler at me anyway.)

And just like last time, once these things are gone, they're gone. I might eventually print more stickers, but they won't boast this particular smart-ass phrasing.

Defeat Your Inner Snorlax

With the shilling out of the way, I'd also like to invite those of you with a freshly opened copy of Pokemon HeartGold or SoulSilver to participate in a little fitness experiment with me.

The Pokewalker Fitness Challenge is a crazy idea I had while following John Kovalic's #geekestloser Twitter trend, but rather than attempt to motivate nerds to lose weight it is instead focused on forcing us to get out of our cubes and do a little bit of walking.

Using the Pokewalker's pedometer function, the PFC challenges participants to clock in a certain number of steps per day. This number grows gradually over a course of weeks until all but one player has grown to weary (or bored) to continue. What will this champion of locomotion win? Not sure. If the participants are willing, maybe everyone will throw 5 or 6 bucks in a pot to go to our final winner. Otherwise there's, y'know, bragging rights.

The Challenge will begin in earnest next week, when players will be asked to establish their base level of activity (i.e.: just see how much they walk around over the course of an average week.) We'll move on from there, and hopefully manage to have a fun time doing it.

Do My Job for Me

Lastly, I can't help but notice that April is just around the corner. With that in mind, I'm hoping to bring last April Fools' Day Podswap back for another round. For those who missed it, the Podswap encourages podcasters to switch shit up in their shows, to let someone unexpected host.

Last year the idea was to trade episodes with a fellow podcasting crew – I presented a primer episode of Brilliant Gameologists and they shared a Radio Free Hipster highlight show – but this year I'm thinking of maybe just letting someone else record and assemble an ep. of RFH outright.

I've already had offers from Selfhelp, funky49, int eighty, Beefy and my boy Church (and his lady friend the GF) to host in my stead, but I'm still totally open for ideas.

Is there a reader, fan or artist you'd love to hear helm a special edition of Radio Free Hipster?

Is there another podcast you'd like to hear me host?

Is this just a horrible idea that I should put to bed?

Just lemme know, okay? It's all about the sharing.

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 85: The Wilder World

This edition of Radio Free Hipster was created by committee. Okay, so maybe that's not wholly accurate, but it's theme was chosen democratically.

So, y'know, this shit is your fault. ;)

In all honesty, I think this episode came out pretty well, and I do appreciate the listener input.

It always serves to liven up the proceedings.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 85: The Wilder World [hosting provided by Antisoc] Size: 40.1 MB Running Time: 43:47

Show Notes:

Intro: Baddd Spellah – "Radio Free Hipster Theme (feat. Beefy)"
They are not animals; they are human beings!

Track 1: Unleashed dialog / The Reborn Identity – "Shake Doggy Shake"
Go and check out Britpop Rebooted. Now.

Z's 1st interlude: "Democracy is a muthafucker."
For those who missed the audience poll that fathered this particular edition, I used a little application called Poll Everywhere. And I think I'll be using it again in the future.

Track 2: MC Frontalot – "Fresh Dog"
I swear I've played this track before, but damned if I (or Google) can remember when!

Track 3: mc chris – "Robot Dog"
MC Frontalot's real dog > mc chris's robot pooch.

Track 4: Tullycraft – "Fangs on Bats"
Thanks again to Matt for turning me on to Tullycraft.

Track 5: Big Bang Theory dialog / Glenn Case – "My Singing Bird"
Another jewel from the Glenn Case songbook.

Track 6: Jonathan Coulton – "Furry Old Lobster"
The story behind this track is fuckin' hilarious. Read it here.

Track 7: Uncle Monsterface – "Lobster Building"
"KARATE PILE-DRIVER!!!"

Track 8: Mazedude – "Safari"
K.K. Setlist is another freebie that would make an excellent addition to your collection.

Z's 2nd interlude: "One of my favorite games of all times."
This podcast took a swift, relatively early turn toward the realm of Animal Crossing. I honestly consider it one of the most compelling series of all time.

Track 9: Fourteen Year Old Girls – "Animal Forest"
From way the fuck back in RFH #2!

Track 10: My Parents' Favorite Music – "When Animals Cross"
And again I lament the loss of MPFM. :(

Track 11: Comptroller – "Crossover Dragon"
Comptroller was nice enough to hip me to the release of this new self-titled LP, and I will now direct your attention toward it as well.

Track 12: Order of the Phoenix dialog / The Whomping Willows – "I Believe in Nargles"
Fact: Luna Lovegood is the shit.

Track 13: Americans UK – "I, Ape-Man"
Haven't played AUK in a bit, and I felt like this one fit so very well.

Track 14: 8 Bit Weapon – "M.U.L.E. (Bitblaster Mix)"
Same goes for 8BW. I can never get enough of their stuff!

Track 15: The J. Arthur Keenes Band – "Catfish Lagoon"
I have yet to hear a track from J. Arthur Keenes that isn't gold.

Z's final interlude: "Also known as Blak Lotus."
For those who don't know, while not seeing to his duties as MC Frontalot's bassist, Brandon is an indie rock superhero.

Track 16: Brandon Patton – "Coelacanth"
Yes, coelacanth is also a reference to Animal Crossing. And big thanks to Snipe for turning me on to this track!

I can't help but notice that my voice-overs come through a little strong in this one. Sorry for any temporary deafness that may happen as a result.

I actually had a really good time pulling this one together, so expect more audience polls. I've been working a lot with what are often termed "audience response systems" at my day job, and this seemed like a cool way to leverage such technology.

Expect the next episode of Radio Free Hipster to be all free-form and stuff. I've had a lot of new tracks come into my possession that require your attention, with not a common thread between them.

But don't fret; I'll work that Star Trek themed episode up in the near future.

Choose Your Own Adventure

Today marks the beginning of this year's South By Southwest festival in Austin, an event that will, in coming weeks, host performances from our own MC Frontalot, Random, Schaffer the Darklord, Jesse Dangerously and YTCracker. But just as importantly, SXSW also kicks off what I like to think of as the expanded convention season.

Think about it; back in the proverbial day the con season was synonymous with summer, but now, ably book-ended by events like PAX East and Dragon*Con, it's sort of grown to encompass everything from early spring to damn-near autumn!

Sadly, as my opportunities for travel are always fairly limited, I have to reserve my excitement for the event(s) that I actually stand a snowball's chance in Hell of actually attending. Currently, this means my old stomping ground Nerdapalooza. (Although, in the interest of full disclosure, I was recently invited to head out west for Maker Faire this May as well. #fingerscrossed)

But rather than reflect on 'Paloozas past, I'd instead like take a look to the future, to this very year's festival. I know Hex and company are planning to continue in the proud tradition of mixing shit up this time around, adding more gaming and merch and visual aspects to the proceedings, but I want to focus on the festival's most prominent feature: the music.

More specifically, I'd like to pick your brains as to who you'd like to see perform this summer in the sweltering Orlando heat.

Now I am in no way a duly deputized representative of Nerdapalooza, and I'm not data mining on behalf of Hex Warrior or EMPulse or A Comic Shop or any of our other Floridian allies. This is just me wondering aloud who your best-case-scenario picks would be for musical entertainment at Nerdapalooza 2010.

Personally, I'd love to see all the locals and our out-of-town regulars – Frontalot, Uncle Monsterface, Dual Core, STD, etc. – as well as some of last year's debuts like Beefy, Shael, Scrub Club and The Protomen.

As for new blood, I'd hope for more geek rock, specifically cats like Kirby Krackle and Wrockers such as The Whomping Willows and Nagini/The Vashta Nerada. On the hip-hop end, as I'm always down for hip-hop, Dale Chase pretty much needs to be there. I'm also really interested in the prospect of a few more danceable chip musicians like Starscream or 8 Bit Weapon coming on as a late night headliner, and I'm wholly in favor of bringing in more international talent like Jesse D or Pixelh8.

Oh, and three words: Optimus. Rhyme. Reunion.

But enough of my yammering. Who's on your Nerdapalooza wish list?

The Dinosaurus Meets the Reggae Hasid

I do not, as a rule, associate Former Fat Boys with particularly illuminated lyrical content. Don't get me wrong; I like the guys. A lot, in fact. And songs about groupies and saurian super scientists and the Nintendo Wii do have a distinctly uplifting quality, but even at his most emotional – such as his superlative verse about a relationship gone wrong in the FFB remix of One Republic's "Secrets" – $uckSex always manages to come off sardonically matter-of-fact, cleverly detached.

So, of course, when listener Dan the Automaton turned me on to this submission to Matisyahu's "One Day" remix contest, I was rather taken aback.

That's not to say I didn't enjoy the hell out of it. I mean, hearing Former Fat Boys add a pair of verses to a joint about striving for peace in a world plagued by violence is a counterintuitive coupling, but that only serves to make it all the more resonant.

Regarding his take on a track that the socially conscious Matisyahu once called "the song I've been wanting to make since I started my career," $uckSex himself weighed in:

I really wanted to find a choir, but I am only one voice right now. My thing is rapping, so I didn't mix up the instrumental too much, but I added two verses. The first is slow and brooding and the second is meant to explode and bring a fast flow to the end. This was an incredible song to be able to add a couple of verses too. It's a simple song and a simple idea, but it really gets you thinking. Kind of made me feel like some of my other tracks are a little shallow. My favorite line is the "one day we're a billion paper planes" line.

If you haven't already, head over to Indaba Music and check out FFB's submission. The winner gets a chance to record with Matisyahu, so maybe cast a vote for it as well if you're so inclined. Either way, definitely make it a point to take in this unlikely (but certainly satisfying) pairing.

Snap. Krackle. Power Pop.

Though I understand it's still a bit early for such talk, I will come right out and say that what will surely prove to be one of my favorite albums of the year dropped yesterday.

Kirby Krackle's E For Everyone has everything I want in a nerdy LP; tight guitar pop, lyrics focused heavily on comic book and con culture, a dash of hip-hop (compliments of GMK) and just the slightest hint of slash fic. Oh yeah, and a cover by Jim-goddamn-Mahfood, which is kind of the best thing ever.

I've got a full review of the album coming in a few days over at GeekDad, but I'll give y'all a little taste of my preliminary findings. Y'know, because we're tight.

Kirby Krackle is a Seattle two-piece whose name evokes the style of Jack Kirby, the oft-cited "King of Comics." (Not, as one fan inaccurately surmised, Nintendo's pink puffball.) musically, they occupy a space equidistant between Jonathan Colton and Weezer. Though they have a definite sound, like the latter, writer/musicians Kyle Stevens and Jim Demonakos also monkey with that musical formula to great effect, like the former.

I was first introduced to the band last year when they released their debut self-titled LP, which boasted the instant classic "Marvelous Girls," a song that is simultaneously one of their best and a fine introduction to the Kirby Krackle style. From there the crew released an amazing follow-up single, "Ring Capacity," and played a show or two with my longtime homey Beefy, which further endeared them to me.

Without getting into the dreaded spoiler territory, I'll just say that E For Everyone does everything that Kirby Krackle did only better. Though it starts with a pair of too-similar entries, it blossoms into a musically diverse and lyrically sound masterpiece of modern geek. Cuts like "Henchmen" and "Great Lakes Avengers" bring the humor, while closers "Dusty Cartridges & Long Boxes" and "Going Home" manage emotional resonance that never devolves into sappiness.

There's also "Roll Over,'" the hip-hop hybrid I alluded to earlier. It's a bit hard to describe, so I want even try. But suffice it to say you'll be hearing it and lots of other Kirby Krackle in upcoming podcasts.

Head over to CD Baby to give the album a spin, and, if you haven't yet had the privilege, peep the debut as well. I believe you'll find them both as indispensable as I have.

Nerd News in Brief

A lady from human resources once had the audacity to ask me the color of my parachute. This is a rather asinine inquiry, as one can learn so much more about me by simply asking my DEVO color.

Seriously.

It is red. That means I have a fiery personality and inherent love of energy domes.

• S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y: This weekend the world will tremble as a direct result of the NYC premiere of Uncle Monsterface performing with a real, live drummer! Attendants can also bask in the glory of the live debut of the song"Heart" featuring Jocelyn Mackenzie of Pearl and the Beard! Come on down to Brooklyn's Death By Audio, and bring a fiver.
• Hip-Hop, Feminism & Nerds: On the more scholarly end, this weekend's Society for Photographic Education conference will include a panel entitled "Potential Feminist Performances of Masculinity in Music: The Hip Hop Subculture of Nerdcore." The Message Is in the Music: Hip Hop Feminism, Riot Grrrl, Latina Music & More is hosted at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY, and is both free and open to the public.
• A Decade in the Making: This year marks the 10th bandiversary of seminal VG rockers The Minibosses. The guys celebrated this landmark by talking about the ten favorite gigs of their career with The Phoenix New Times.
• Spoiler – Wear Deodorant: Meanwhile, our own MC Frontalot compiled a list of 5 indispensable survival tips for PAX East. It’s a comprehensive piece for the potentially ill-prepared masses.
• Artichoke: Also on the subject of PAX, my literary homey Lev Grossman recently interviewed the Gabe and the Tycho for a piece over at Techland. Give it a read.
• (Ack)Bar None: The first of Church’s outlandish contributions to this edition of NNIB is news of a student initiative to replace Ole Miss’s potentially offensive rebel mascot with a far nerdier alternative. It’s a Trap!
• Old School: Also from Church comes news of NPR’s recent blurb about filk. Not exactly an earth-shattering piece, but a nice nod to perhaps the oldest nerd music community.
• Fear the Beard: Big ups to geeky academic Jason Tocci, who recently talked about his dissertation research concerning nerd identity with Technically Philly. Sadly, there’s no plug for Hipster, please! therein, but even Jason needs to take a break from pimping my projects every once in a while. ;)
• In Space: I did, however, get a plug – of the self-induced variety – over at John Anealio's Sci Fi Songs blog. There I contributed to John's new "Interstellar Jukebox" feature, writing about my favorite space song.
• Nerd Ink, Supplemental: I would similarly like to congratulate this gentleman. You win at nerd ink!
• Comedy, of the Highest Order: I don’t even have a witty accompanying line for this piece on geek chic, so allow me instead to quote: "Geeks are the most important natural resource the world has ever known. Without them gravity would be nothing more than a shitty John Mayer song."
• Underwhelmed at the Helm: Last month at London's Millennium Bridge, a new Guinness world record was set for the largest gathering of people dressed as Star Trek characters. The magic number? 99. Way to aim low, British Trekkies!
• Who's Better, Who's Best: Still, Church is quick to point out that UK nerdlingers easily redeem themselves in this Guardian piece concerning the SFX Weekender. All it took was a little Tom Baker!
• Bazinga!: Back on this side of the pond, my pal Raz was nice enough to hip me to a site specializing in the dorktastic wearables featured in the Big Bang Theory. There's even a page dedicate to Howard's belt buckles.
• New YT/Old YT: Closing us out today is a pair of videos featuring the incomparable YTCracker. As YT will be shaving his head for charity later this month, it seemed only right to let him take us home. This first is a new video directed by Irina Slutsky and featuring Doc Pop and Unwoman. The second is a portrait of the artist as a young man.

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 84: Inspect the Unexpected

I am not particularly clever or preternaturally sneaky. It is rare, in fact, that I ever "get the drop" on anyone. But with this podcast I at least give it a try.

You see, I seek to leverage the element of musical surprise to delight and amaze.

And no reading the show notes before you listen! That's cheating.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 84: Inspect the Unexpected [hosting provided by Antisoc] Size: 45.1 MB Running Time: 49:15

Show Notes:

Intro: Baddd Spellah – "Radio Free Hipster Theme (feat. Beefy)"

Okay, so not exactly the most surprising way to open a show.

Track 1: Glenn Case – "So Emotional"
I'm a big fan of Glenn's acoustic cover of the day project. And not just because he takes my unintentional requests.

Z's 1st interlude: "What wouldn't you expect to hear afterward?"
Now I'm thinking 45 minutes of silence, but that's no way to run a railroad!

Track 2: The White Panda – "Throw Some Tik on That Tok"
There are, by my estimation, 3000 Ke$ha mash-ups currently available. This is one of them

Track 3: "Dig Dug Theme" / Insane Ian – "DiG Dug"
I really don't play enough Demento-style music. That and filk are the progenitors of most modern incarnations of nerd music, so we owe both styles an immeasurable debt.

Track 4: Jonny Nero Action Hero – "Experimutations"
Jonny's got a great chiptune/guitar rock hybrid thing going on. I think you're really gonna dig his album.

Track 5: Kabuto the Python – "Those Minerals"
This track's garnered Kabuto some serious attention over the past couple of weeks. Good for him!

Track 6: Radames Ortiz & Jonathan Jindra – "GTA"
Poetry is another thing I seldom include in the show rotation, but Radames's stuff certainly fits in.

Track 7: Monty Python dialog / Action Adventure World vs. The Plasmas – "Contra 2010"
This unholy union was brought to my attention by my friends at Game Music 4 All.

Z's 2nd interlude: "This internal logic to the ebb and flow of my song selection."
Or at least that's the plan. Not sure how it actually translates.

Track 8: Spamtec Crew – "Life is an Inbox"
STC is the greatest!

Track 9: Divide and Kreate – "Kissie Minogue"
Because no one expects a KISS mash-up.

Track 10: Scrubs dialog / The Boobles – "Oh Won't You Show Your Cans"
This one also played into the fact that we just celebrated Fat Tuesday.

Track 11: Kevin Figueiredo – "Stand Up (Rock Remix)"
This episode contains 125% of your RDA of Luda!

Track 12: Deafinition – "The Abyss"
Peep the other cuts from this particular One Hour Compo here.

Z's final interlude: "He did so on a whim."
Speaking of The Clash, the background music for this episode is bithoven's chip cover of "Rock the Casbah."

Track 13: Navi – "Grayscale" / Voicemail
Much love to Glenn and Shael for the messages. I've always wanted to accept listener call-ins, and the magic of Google Voice has made it possible.

The short month has thrown my schedule off a bit, but I'm already prepping for March's episodes. Theme and song suggested are, as always, appreciated and encouraged.

I'm also slightly terrified to realize that, if my current output stays consistent, this year will see my 100th episode. Who woulda thunk?

Not me.

Certainly not me. :)

Hot Otaku-on-Otaku Action

Some things are, within the feeble confines of my mind, forever intertwined. Like peanut butter and chocolate or the classic white shirt and black tie. They are inseparable. Parts of an undeniably greater whole.

Another far more applicable example would be Karl "Ultraklystron" Olson and Rai Kamishiro. When Rai's unique blend of Japanese pop and bilingual hip-hop was first introduced to nerds at large via the original Rhyme Torrents compilations, it was done so at the behest of Ultraklystron. Since that time, Rai has stuck close to Karl, musically-speaking. As her de facto producer, his steady-handed production techniques have done almost as much to define the Rai style as the vocalist's own unique approach to songwriting.

Both Ultraklystron and Rai closed out 2009 with hot new albums. From Karl it was Romance Language 2, the direct successor to his 2007 concept album. From Rai, her long-awaited full-length. Both arrived in my mailbox from the wilds of Seattle at the same time, and I've been enjoying the two as sort of an Olson-produced matched set for months. Thus, it seemed only fitting that I present the pair to you in a similar manner.

Karl begins the second installment of the project that I still consider to be his greatest musical triumph with the chiptune-flavored "Past-Date Poetry," which pairs the drain of the daily grind with the heartache of distance. Lyrically, Karl starts things off a little pedestrian with rhymes about Starbucks and coding, but the beat is stark and haunting, which plays well into the delicate keys of "Shutter." This track shows that Ultraklystron's once again found his verbal footing with some rapid-fire braggadocio.

From there he switches gears with the Twilight-inspired "Perfect White Knight," but don't let the subject matter put you off; sure, it boasts what could be termed Karl's "default flow," but it's also a fairly astute dissection of a warped love story. "Scan Your Eyes" does it one better with an unforgettable beat, but the album doesn't hit its true lyrical stride until the wholly bizarre (and self-explanatory) "Polygonous Polygamy."

"Warmth" seemingly brings in Karl's own interpretation of the west coast funk breaks of old coupled with some clever ruminations on the pain of separation, while "Funhouse Mirror" is the audio equivalent of its titular subject matter that only disappoints when Ultraklystron is forced to stretch a syllable or goes for an easy rhyme. "Aim 4 the Top," however, sees the artist mixing his beat from a wholly different aural palette and rapping from his lower register, an unexpected combination that's sure to please.

"Distant Star" again pushes the envelope of Ultraklystron production with a harsh, glitchy hook that plays well against his sing-along chorus. "Congratulations" slows things down a bit as Karl reflects on his love... of music. It's a solid offering that scores points for clever lyricism (particularly the nod to Rai's Electric Sheep), but loses me a bit on the last verse. "On Your Six," on the other hand, is a modern love song that comes through as a real gem.

"Neverending" and "That One" show Karl's continued interest in pushing himself musically, and "Second Place" gets incredibly personal while maintaining its own unique musicality. "Sweetest" starts the album's final decent with a Tears for Fears croon and a frenetic beat – combining to make it another of Ultraklystron's best – but "The Dream Designed" sadly winds up the album-proper with a few recycled elements, both in lyrical content and melody. An interesting closer, but not an instant classic.

In true Ultraklystron style, Romance Language 2 tacks on a number of interesting bonus tracks to flesh out the release. "Feature Creep," from the special Nerdcore Rising Song Fight!, is classic Karl redefined, while the Jazzstep remix of "Sweetest" takes the track to dizzying new heights. "Perfect White Night (Goldfish Mix)," adds a little more low-end to the joint, and "The Dream Designed (Jump Up Mix)" polishes the original closer nicely.

Electric Sheep's opener, "Mayanoka TV," sees both Ultraklystron and Rai playing with the classic formula. The beat is more brassy and poppy, while the vocal stylings lean far more toward the realm of straight J-pop than skewed hip-hop. "Kakumei No Hi" brings the rap back, atop a well-layered backing that proves a great lead-in for "Mechanical World," a track that surfaced long before the album's full completion.

The vocals on "#" seem a tad flat in places, but the beat stays tight and insistent. Despite the fact that "HollowWw" recycles the beat from Rai's classic "Big Lie," it's still a stellar track, and it pairs nicely with the slightly downbeat, English-heavy "Tsundere 2x4."

"Sky Lark" wears a little thin at over 5 minutes in length, but it has a somber quality that helps to break up the album. "Goldfish," which takes a while to build, comes through as a success on all fronts, and "Sleeping Forest," another pre-album release, is smooth, sultry and funky. "Denpa-K," on the other hand, is aggressive and feels slightly rushed, especially when contrasted with well-metered follow-up "Shinjuku Holocaust."

Unlike Romance Language 2, Electric Sheep closes on a high note: the contemplative and musically mournful "Pale Cocoon." Though its effect is lessened its immediate follow-up Momento Mori Mix, which only tweaks the original's formula. "Mayanoka TV (Wubstep Mix)," however, is a far cry from the album opener, and piles on the reverb with a vengeance.

The last trio of tracks, remixes of "Goldfish," "Kakumei No Hi" and "Shinjuku Holocaust," bring in Ultraklystron himself as guest vocalist, which adds a nice additional texture to each.

I'll transition from that comment to my proper summation because of the importance of that word: texture. Ultraklystron's musical stylings have always been defined by his keen ear for texturing audio. He has a fine grasp for when to muddy up a mix and when to keep it crisp. The fact that Karl's voice itself offers the proper bedrock upon which to construct an electronic banger certainly doesn't hurt matters. Though I've always nitpicked his word choice – and Romance Language 2 is no exception to this criticism – I've likewise admired the innate quality of his voice.

The same can be said for Rai; her frantic mash of Japanese, English and girlish squeals certainly doesn't appeal to everyone, but I have long counted myself among her most fervent of fans. Both Ultraklystron's Romance Language 2 and her Electric Sheep are quite enjoyable on their own, but, as I mentioned before, they also serve as a perfectly serviceable one-two punch of nerdy musical genius.

While I'd be hard-pressed to pick my favorite of the two, I'd ultimately have to give the nod to Electric Sheep. It's Rai's first proper full-length, and thus it possesses a charm not likely to be found in any other release. Still, Romance Language 2, while not as keenly focused as its predecessor, is a must-have for the otaku set and connoisseurs of the nontraditional love song.

Thankfully, with both albums available via Bandcamp, fans and curious passers-by alike should have no problem affording both or, failing that, cherry-picking their favorite selections from each. Hell, you can sample the whole of both online and even pick up a freebie track or two, so my ultimate recommendation would be to go forth, listen and enjoy.

While neither album is pure perfection, both artists show continued growth and innovation, and both albums possess a wealth of enjoyable musical moments. And that certainly shouldn't remain unrewarded.

"I wanna be the ichiban nerdcore beat rocker."

Nerd News in Brief

For readers wise enough to avoid the poison that is my Twitter feed, I will recap the events of my life over the past few weeks. It goes something like this:

Mass Effect 2.

Mass Effect 2.

Mass Affect.

Wait; I mean Mass Effect 2.

So, y'know, I've been busy!

And for any current or future game designers who might stumble across this missive, let me expressly state that any game that lets you headbutt a krogan is gold. Solid gold.

• The Hat Trick: We'll kick off this edition of Nerd News in Brief with another piece on geek chic mined from the deepest crags of the internet by our old pal Church Hates Tucker. This one's from New Zealand's Stuff and it includes talk about nerdy fashion, a reference to nerdcore and incites "geek is not nerd" bitching in the comments. All the bases are aptly covered.
  
• Geek Sheik?: Church likewise dredged up this jewel, also from the land of the Kiwis. It's a puff piece on eyewear worth a cursory glance if for nothing more than the pronunciation key.
• Only Their Hairdressers Know for Sure: On the other end of nerd culture hot button issues, Asylum takes on 4 mainstream nerd girls that might just be fronting. Oh geek chic, you are a double-edged sword!
• OMG PWNies: My hometown homey Brooks was the first of many to point me toward this amazing piece at Boing Boing. It concerns computer scientist Christine Alvarado, and how, as a child, she was introduced to recursion by playing with her My Little Pony. For the record, her nerd cred is now and forever cemented.
• Techdirt & Dragons: Earlier this month Mike Masnick posted an interesting piece about I Fight Dragons, the 1,000 true fans concept and middleclass musicians over at Techdirt. Though it's a bit of a moot point now with regard to IFD – and, to his credit, Mike updated the post after news of the band's signing to Atlantic surfaced – it's quite a good read, especially for the modern music maker.
• Mazes, Monsters & Malarkey: Dungeons & Dragons, always a lightning rod for odd controversy, recently popped back into the collective consciousness when it was revealed that University of Alabama shooter Amy Bishop Anderson was "heavily involved" in the tabletop classic. Peep last week's Escapist for more info.
• The Power of the Dark Side: As we gear up for next month's South By Southwest festival – another spectacular event that, sadly, I won't be attending – it would be wrong not to mention the event's positively geektastic film premiere: The People vs. George Lucas. This post from Sci Fi Wire is an ample intro to the project itself, and offers a look at both trailers (one of which features MC Frontalot.)
• Radio, Radio: Church also drummed up some news of particular note to Midwestern geeks; this month SE Missouri State's student radio station launched its very own dork-centered program. "Nerd Word" airs Fridays at 2:00 PM on RAGE 103.7, and focuses on gaming, technology and pop culture.
• Shades of Gray: Though I mentioned it was incoming a few weeks back, I neglected to announce the triumphant release of my boy Navi's new Grayscale LP. It's a free download that is as shit-hot as all that's come before from the-artist-formally-known-as-Myf. You can stay abreast of developments concerning his ongoing Beyond Grayscale mixtape when sign up for Navi's mailing list at BandCamp.
• Fit But He Knows It: From across the pond comes word from B-Type (the former MisterB) of a pair of new projects. The first is a YouTube channel through which B will ply his nerdy rap trade, while the second is an endeavor attached to the promising moniker "Keeping Fit with B-Type."
• Takin' it Back: With all the hubbub regarding the Goonies 25th anniversary celebration in Astoria, I thought it'd be a great time to point y'all toward Keith Doughty and Rob Dean's Goonies musical fan project. Check out the neuroticmonkey's YouTube channel to relive the childhood adventure. In verse, no less.
• Giant Squids and Robot Armies: This, of course, can only be followed with a plug for "Super Bowl Commercials: The Musical!" featuring Jonathan Coulton and Paul & Storm. There's even a little behind-the-scenes vid, if you're into that kind of thing.
• The Apple of Your Ear: Chiptune composers looking to put their old Apple II's to good use should take a gander at the newest product from 8 Bit Weapon. Their Digital Music Synthesizer is the only wavetable synth for the Apple //e, IIc and IIc+ computers suitable for performance use. (It doesn't require a monitor, so you've got one less piece of heavy tech to drag all the way to your gig!) The application on good ol' Apple II 5.25" disk is available for $19.95 via the 8BW store.
• How I Roll with Control: Closing out this NNIB is a new video from otaku MC extraordinaire MAJA. It's for gamer anthem "UUDDLRL" from his classic Amalgam Project, and was directed by Johnie Lewis Tidwell Jr. Give it a look-see, and watch out for that checkout girl. She's up to something.

Weird Science

Making music in this brave new world of internet distribution is a bit of a crapshoot. Sometimes the ease of the digital download allows one to create a rabid enough fanbase to sustain continued artistic endeavors (a la Jonathan Coulton), and sometimes it easily enables the more adventurous of the major labels to pick up on a particular act's unique slant and undeniable potential (as in the case of I Fight Dragons).

While there's no surefire key to success, a good method for artists looking to cultivate a strong relationship with potential fans is what I like to call the here's-some-free-shit approach.

Allow me to explain: an artist makes new, quality content available for free from his site, and encourages listeners to root around in his catalog. Only then, after these casual observers have become full-fledged fans content in the knowledge that the artist truly has a product of interest, does our hero offer for-pay material.

Recently, John Anealio, one of my favorite purveyors of geeky guitar rock, has taken the plunge into phase 2 of this model. His venture into the world of the full album release is dubbed Sci Fi Songs after the music blog at which John does the bulk of his nerdy songwriting.

The album collects 11 of John's most popular and most polished tracks into one shiny, affordable package. Moreover, it does so in such a way as to highlight Anealio's folksy, rootsy style while summarily affording a satisfying arc relating a series of fairly disparate works.

The disc opens with "The Return of Titus Quinn," a brief alternate-tuned acoustic instrumental that centers on the protagonist from Kay Kenyon's Bright of the Sky. As this represents John's first serious attempt at the solo acoustic instrumental, it's an excellent jumping-off point and a charmingly atmospheric track to boot.

From there he gets all poppy and waxes poetic about the trials of robot hunter Rick Deckard in the Philip K. Dick inspired, "Rachel Rosen," easily my favorite tune from the collection, before kicking the vocal harmonies up another notch with "Leodora," based on Frost's Shadowbridge.

He briefly loses me with the ever-popular "Cylon #6," which, while both centered on the crown jewel of current sci-fi nerd series and possessing a fantastic rhythmic movement, puts me off a bit with some awkward wording. Still, it's a fine lead-in to the undeniable "Summer Glau," a filk track conceived by SF Signal's John DeNardo, but skillfully retooled with an original melody by Anealio himself.

John marks the half-way point with the Anne Rice-inspired "Angels & Vampires," a joint that showcases his smooth vocals on an unforgettable chorus. Thereafter he smooths things out with the masterful musical storytelling of "Lonesome October Night" – based on Roger Zelazny's satirical swansong A Night in the Lonesome October – which is another undeniable high point.

"Sarene," alternately, is a rocked-up love song from the mind of Brandon Sanderson, and plays nicely against the somber "Merithyn's Promise," another solo acoustic track based on Requiem for the Sun. From there he changes gears again with the autobiographical (and totally relatable) "The Millennium Falcon for Christmas," as the lead-up to his closer "Grasping for the Wind," a veritable love letter to the blog of the same name and all the other sites that make the online speculative fiction scene such a strong and vibrant community.

With the obvious exception of the odd rushed syllable, there's really nothing to not to love about Sc Fi Songs (even for my particular ass). I mean, sure, I would've love to have heard some of John's heavily electronic work included or possibly a remix of one of his more popular songs, but, by and large, it’s a well-hewn collection of geek folk favorites.

It's available from CD Baby for a mere 10 bones – 8 if your just looking for a digital version – and I'd say it would go a long way in adding some additional variety to your nerdy music collection. In fact, I dig the album so much that I'm gonna give a copy away to one lucky reader!

Just head over to John's blog or the CD Baby album page and do a little digging. Then come back here and post a comment naming your favorite John Anealio original, cover or fan remix. I'll pull a winner at random next week and send him/her a shiny new copy of the disc… and maybe some Hipster, please! goodies to boot!

So go give Anealio's stuff a listen. It will surely soothe your sci-fi soul.

"I book a hotel room, I hope she gets here soon/ I've got three androids to retire."

Nerd Love

Here at Hipster, please! I like to pause on occasion to recognize what I like to think of as "excellence in nerdery." It's a ritual I often tend to overlook, but, thankfully, today I find myself wholly unable to resist the call to arms.

Justin was one of many new friends I made at Nerdapalooza '08 – he also holds the hotly contested record for possessing the least attractive picture of yours truly, but that's neither here nor there – and he recently shared with me his own triumphant tale of matrimonial bliss.

Justin and his new bride Exxa tied the knot earlier this month, and my boy managed to insert some nerdy swagger into the proceedings. Not only did he sport purple Chucks with his tuxedo and spring for a custom-sculpted cake topper (procured, of course, via eBay), but he rocked a boutonnière made from a re-purposed ASUS GeForce Ti 4400 video card!

Also, the happy couple's last dance was to "With You"
by Chicago chip-rocker I Fight Dragons. Impressive, no?

I mean, it's easy to be a dork in your everyday, when you're in your cube or leveling up in W.O.W., but keeping shit nerdy on your wedding day requires a special kind of dedication. And deserves a special kind of commendation.

So please join me in wishing Justin and Exxa the heartiest of congratulations, and saluting their continued commitment to nerd life and nerd love.