BOSTON8BIT DOT COM

December Happenings

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 22:23:00 -0500

SAT DEC 17: Radio Scotvoid @ WMBR (MIT Radio)

DJ Radio Scotvoid will be guest DJing the ‘Algorhythms’ show on MIT’s campus radio station WMBR 88.1FM. The fun goes from 2AM to 4AM EST, and there’s a call-in number on the website so you can request specific craziness! Join up at the Facebook event to keep yourself reminded.

THU DEC 15: New Release: Active Knowledge - ‘The New Sciences’ EP

‘The New Sciences’, the new EP from Active Knowledge is releasing on December 15th! A promotional track is available over at the album’s Bandcamp page, where you can find the entirety of the album after its release. Digital and physical pre-orders become available on December 9th, and attendees of the Hidden Level show in Worcester may be able to acquire Bandcamp copies of the album early via download code! See below for details.

FRI DEC 9: The Hidden Level Presents: BOSTON8BIT

The Hidden Level Dance & Performance Showcase is an event that takes place in Worcester at T.E.S.L.A., which appears to be a neat hackerspace-type deal. They’ve reached out, and Seventh Gear/Active Knowledge will be performing at this month’s party! Facebook link has the details, but it’s at 97D Webster Street from 7-10PM. A $5-10 donation is suggested, but not mandatory.

STANDBY...

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 18:41:58 -0500

Info on fun things to come, stay tuned folks!

-B8BTEAM

Chip In: Japan!

Sat, 19 Mar 2011 09:47:00 -0400

TCTD and Pixelh8 have joined forces to create a compilation of chipmusic with proceeds going directly to the Red Cross to support ongoing efforts toward earthquake/tsunami recovery in Japan. So far, volume 1 of the compilation has been released with over 40 tracks, and a second volume is coming soon. You can receive the compilation by donating via the widget on our sidebar, or submit your own track by e-mailing japan@truechip.org. Visit http://truechiptilldeath.com/japan for information on how to obtain your copy after donating. Thank you for caring! :-)

Geekbeat Radio Appearance: MC Facepalm, Br1ght Pr1mate and Seventh Gear

Sat, 19 Mar 2011 00:20:00 -0400

Geekbeat Radio was awesome enough to have MC Facepalm, Br1ght Pr1mate and Seventh Gear in the studio for live sets during their Post-PAX East wrap-up show! Click here [MP3] to listen to the podcast from their appearance, huge thanks to Geekbeat Radio and Unregular Radio for supporting chipmusic in Boston!

BOSTON8BIT Presents: Chiptune Showcase @ PAX East 2011!

Sat, 26 Feb 2011 11:22:00 -0500

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BOSTON8BIT & MAGFEST HOSTING 3 DAYS OF CHIPTUNE CONCERTS AT PAX EAST
Chip music pioneers Bit Shifter and Glomag to headline a 3-part showcase in March

BOSTON, MA - FEBRUARY 24, 2011 - Those yearning to hear the reinvigorated sounds of vintage game consoles at this year’s PAX East will not be disappointed: Established local chiptune collective BOSTON8BIT are bringing the high-energy back to PAX once more with a 3-part showcase featuring scene pioneers Bit Shifter and Glomag, as well as a whopping 13 additional performances from some of the country’s most promising micromusic acts. Each set will be enhanced by live circuitbent visuals from Invaderbacca, H_N_i_C and Batsly Adams, forming a mesmerizing audiovisual gestalt you won’t soon forget.

Chip music, sometimes called “chiptune” or “8-bit music,” is a growing subculture of electronic music that utilizes the sound chips found inside obsolete videogame consoles and computers to synthesize new original works in music and visual art. In the past decade, small communities dedicated to exploring and expanding the practice have emerged around the world, including here in Boston where local organizers from BOSTON8BIT have been putting on sold-out shows at venues like the Middle East since 2009.

The concerts will take place on all three days of PAX East, March 11th, 12th and 13thfrom 11am&-2pm EST in the JAMSPACE concert area, which has once again been graciously provided by our friends from Northern Virginia’s Music And Games Festival (MAGFest). In addition, chip musician and videogame culture journalist Zen Albatross will give a presentation on the history of chip music, followed by an artist Q&A session on Saturday, March 12th at 10am in the Jamspace.

The full lineup of performances is as shown below:

=== FRIDAY, 3/11 ===
Cathode Rays
Oxygenstar
Active Knowledge
Animal Style
Bit Shifter

=== SATURDAY, 3/12 ===
AdamGetsAwesome
Zen Albatross
Danimal Cannon
Br1ght Pr1mate
Smiletron

=== SUNDAY, 3/13 ===
7th Gear
Facundo
The Shortsleeves
Disasterpeace
glomag and Corset lore

Don’t forget to stick around the Jamspace to catch some extra special surprises throughout the weekend, like bonus jam sessions from The Protomen, Armcannon, Mega64 and much more. And don’t forget that the Jamspace will be available for freeform jamming each night up until 2am — Just come in, sign up, pick up an instrument and play!

RSVP on Facebook, and follow @Boston8Bit on Twitter to learn about more events like these in the Boston area and beyond. For all inquiries, please contact Chris Mahoney at chris@boston8bit.com

PAX East will take place March 11-13th, 2011 at the Boston Trade and Convention Center in Boston, MA. For more info and travel directions, please visit http://paxsite.com.

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SAVE FACUNDO

Wed, 10 Nov 2010 21:17:25 -0500

One of my bestest friends Facundo has been facing a serious uphill battle to remain in the country, a lot of you already know him/how awesome he is. I DON’T WANT FACUNDO TO GO. I’m setting up a Bandcamp site to re-host releases from a bunch of artists, with donations going directly to the legal battle.

If you’re a musician and want to make a difference, you can! If you have a Bandcamp account already, email a link to your contribution to chris@boston8bit.com. Include artist/album info, the minimum donation you’d like to set for purchase and any special message you’d like to place on your page. If you don’t have a Bandcamp account, that’s okay! Just email chris@boston8bit.com with the same info and I’ll arrange to receive audio files from you. WAV/AIFF/FLAC only, please.

Thank you, every little bit counts!

Your pal,
-Chris

BLOG UNDER CONSTRUCTION!

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 10:22:00 -0400

Okay, updates to the main page of our site have been scarce and scattered so it is time to take it down and start fresh. The rest of the site is still hanging out to the left on the sidebar, feel free to look around in the meantime! The next BOSTON8BIT show is taking place on November 14th at Church in Boston. Check out the Facebook event page for more details!

Cheers,

- The B8B Team

B8B coverage in tha news

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 19:02:00 -0400

It’s been a while since an update, but lots has been going on! The Boston Globe covered BOSTON8BIT in anticipation of Chiptune 8, and we thank Jonathan Perry for doing such a great job of portraying what we do. On top of that, James and Lydia of Br1ght Pr1mate appeared on FOX News’ morning program FOX & Friends to interview about chiptune in general, and perform a couple of songs. Check it out below!

More coverage on the ‘After the Show Show’

Check back for more information on Chiptune X, the 10th installation of our series of Boston chiptune shows!

CHIPTUNE 8 ALERT!

Fri, 18 Jun 2010 09:32:00 -0400

Facebook event page

Wednesday, June 23rd - Great Scott, Allston MA [map]
9pm - $8 - 18+

Lineup:
Je Deviens DJ En 3 Jours
Cream in all Moustache
Disasterpeace
Cathode Rays
Br1ght Pr1mate

Visuals: VJ Beyonder

Radio Scotvoid's live Chiptune Megamix!

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 21:32:21 -0400

Radio Scotvoid, our resident chiptune DJ at BOSTON8BIT shows, has just released the live megamix that he’s been motivating people to dance with - go check it out!

Radio Scotvoid - Chiptune Megamix 2010 @ Mixcloud

Chiptune 6 coverage and new video!

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 14:02:00 -0400

Glenn at Nerdfit Network was awesome enough to write an article about his experience at Chiptune 6, which seems to reflect the general fantastic nature of the night. On top of that, Avi from Cathode Rays has provided some excellent video from the Active Knowledge set, featuring Facundo’s second performance where much not-shirt-having was had. Check out the Chiptune 6 page to see the videos - Thanks to everyone that came out, and make sure to check out upcoming shows to get more information on The Super Epic Chiptune Dance Party in New Bedford next Friday 5/7!

Radio Scotvoid Chiptune Megamix

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 23:34:00 -0400

Radio Scotvoid has released his Chiptune Megamix on Mixcloud, which might sound familiar to anyone that has arrived early to one of our events. Check it out!

The Chiptune Megamix by Radio Scotvoid on Mixcloud

Highlights include:
Fighter X - Xtra Life
Henry Homesweet - I Love You
Rainbow Jump Orchestra - Muffins

Scott is our resident Chipmusic DJ that opens up our events and loosens people up a bit, you can check him out at our next show on Friday, May 7th in New Bedford (see the upcoming shows page for details). You can check out his releases at his website, radioscotvoid.com.

Welcome to the new BOSTON8BIT.com!

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 15:06:00 -0400

Hey everyone,

Welcome to the new site! The entire thing has been re-coded from scratch by hand, so we have control over how organized and useful it is. Here is a breakdown of the new site sections:

Artists
The artist profiles on B8B are now broken out per artist/group, with all sorts of neato video/audio/link goodness for each member.

Past Shows
The past shows page is now an archive of all the major BOSTON8BIT shows that have taken place! Each one contains slideshows of all photos/video from the show, as well as any articles that appeared in the press alongside each event.

Upcoming Shows
The upcoming shows page is actually used now, and gives an easy breakdown of each upcoming show with maps and Facebook event page links.

Along with these sections, there is a new contact page for press/booking inquiries, and links to other events/artists from all over. If you have any questions, issues, ideas, send them our way at chris@boston8bit.com. Thank you for supporting B8B, and we hope to see you at our next event!

Cheers,
-Chris and BOSTON8BIT