The Minibosses
|
|
Minibossesep.jpg
The Minibosses is an independent progressive rock/progressive metal band originally from Northampton, Massachusetts and currently located in Phoenix, Arizona. Formed in January 2000, they are known for their video game based songs, which are instrumental rock variations of classic NES video game music from games such as Metroid and Castlevania. The Minibosses have managed to form a growing following amongst video game fans, and allow fans to download several free songs off their website. Much of their following has come from their constant playing of concerts at local clubs around Arizona and other cities in the southwest. Fans refer to themselves as Minibossies and are known to travel great lengths to see the band. The band has also formed quite a following on their web forums, which is host to most tour announcements, new video game covers from other remixers, and the Dwelling of Duels competition.
There are a various video game song remixes floating around the Internet that are falsely attributed (perhaps by mistaken fans) to The Minibosses. These include a remix of the theme from the first level of Doom, among many others. The Minibosses only remix NES game music.
| Contents |
History
In 1997, prior to the formation of The Minibosses, Aaron Burke and Matt Wood teamed up with several other friends from same dorm at the University of Massachusetts to form one of the earliest video game cover bands, The Jenova Project. When Jenova Project went on indefinite hiatus in 1999, The Minibosses formed, covering mainly Nintendo Entertainment System music (in addition to some original songs and live covers).
The band released their first album in late 2000, which contained both original and cover songs. They later admitted they were not satisfied with the quality of the recordings and have since recorded new versions of the old songs. From 2000 to now, they have toured continuously, while recording new material for new albums. During this time, the video game cover scene has matured quite a bit, with the rise of popular sites such as VGMix (http://www.vgmix.com), Rock-Out!! (http://www.rock-out.net), and OcRemix (http://www.ocremix.org). The band loves its fans and loves its refreshing malt beverages, namely Sparks. They often tour through Arizona and California, and occasionally come back to their roots in the northeast to play shows.
The band has gone through several changes, mostly on second guitar. Previously held by Rich Smaldone briefly and later Fred Johnson, it is now played by former After Any Accident guitarist John Lipfert.
Members
Current
- Ben Baraldi - vocals, bass
- Aaron Burke - guitar
- John Lipfert - guitar
- Matt Wood - drums
Previous
- Fred Johnson - guitar (2002-2004)
- Rich Smaldone - guitar (2001-2002)
Discography
- Minibosses (2000)
- Minibosses (EP) (2004)
- Live at the Middle East (2004)
- Minibosses/Penny Winblood (2005)
References
- Borges, Mario Mesquita. "The Minibosses (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&uid=UIDMISS70404221955491644&sql=Bcecm96hojep8)". All Music Guide. Retrieved May 9, 2005.
External links
- The Minibosses official web site (http://minibosses.com/)
- The Official Minibosses online compendium (http://www.good-evil.net/theshizz/shizzinary.htm)
- The Minibosses forum (http://www.theshizz.org/forum/index.php?s=6e9c23f481a247afc2f815f3c1d86046&act=SF&f=8)