Suge Silent Live

You may be asking yourself “What is a silent live?” We did too while going to Akihabara to check out what all the fuss was about. How could there be a live performance without blasting speakers assaulting your precious eardrums? The event was a promotion for the new chiptune compilation aptly entitled, Squarewave Surfers Memory of 8bit from Vorc Records. chiptune is a musical genre that was spawned in Japan by using old 8bit video game systems like the original Nintendo to make music. The songs traditionally have a very retro sound and feel as if you are in a video game, but recent artists have broadened the horizons of the genre to the point where at times you can hardly tell it was made on a system that is over 25 years old.

After arriving in Akihabara Station, the hub for all things Otaku, we head to a small alley where the guys from Vorc Records are setting up. Today’s concert was free for all to view and attracted a lot of passersby. The setup was quite simple. There was a long table with all the artists’ gear lined out with 5 Belkin Rockstars.

The white thing hanging from the mic stand is a Belkin Rockstar. The idea behind a silent live is you bring your own headphones and plug in to the Belkin Rockstar and enjoy the music in silence. It’s like a concert that where you are in your own world.

The show started off with suge by him powering on the original Gameboy. Everyone with a headphone heard the classic power on note. Everyone without a headphone heard nothing. He held his Gameboy which was relayed through a Roland EF-303 and pumped out blips and bloops with heavy baselines and intricate midi progressions all with the tapping of his fingers. He continually was tapping buttons but they didn’t seem to correlate with the rhythm of the song. He then switched cartridges for his second song which had a more jungle feel to it. This song was much more frantic and felt like an experimental turntablist set. However, the original Gameboy couldn’t handle the intense barrage of fly by notes and froze up. The festivities resumed with a quick flip of the power on button.



Hally, one of the founders of the chiptune scene was on next. He had a model of the remade version of the original NES (Nintendo). He sung through most of his songs that was transformed into a computer-like voice. After introducing himself, he turned on 2 Nintendo systems both with custom games with a SD card inserted and wires protruding into the mixer. It was an actual DJ set that replaced turntables with the original Nintendo Video Game System or Famicom as it’s called in Japan. To time things properly he would simply reset the system while it was cross faded out. The second song was a chiptune remix of the New Order classic, “Blue Monday” complete with computerized singing from Hally. His distorted vocal mix was superb and the perfect song to remix in to chiptune. For the third song, he played “Surfin’ U.S.A.” from Squarewave Surfers Memory of 8 bit. For this he added a third instrument to the mix, Gameboy Advance. Hally used buttons to make live music on the spot, going up and down minor scales. He even proceeded to do a rock’n’roll solo. He told HearJapan before the show that he prefers the remade NES model over the classic one because it produces better sound.

The third artist to perform from Squarewave Surfers Memory of 8 bit was none other than Saitone who released his full length album last month, Overlapping Spiral last month. Saitone played more of an ambient set and used the Roland EF-303 extensively. The third song was fantastic. It felt just like a video game with added blips in there just for fun.



The last artist was BEN. He used two Gameboys and a CHAOS pad. This artist incorporated happy hardcore into his music. While it had remnants of happy hardcore, there was a much darker sound and heavy use of effects via the CHAOS pad. Out of all the artists it felt the most danceable and more what you would expect to hear in a night club. He used one Gameboy for the beat and the other for the melody.

Overall the show was great. Each artist had their own original method for playing. With unique performances by each artist, it kept the audience engaged. The silent live concept was also very cool and a great way to hold an outdoor concert in the middle of a busy district without disturbing anybody. For those interested in chiptune definitely be sure to pick up a copy of Squarewave Surfers Memory of 8 bit!