Powerlifter
POWERLIFTER didn’t get started because a few guys got together and wanted to try and “make it” in Wichita’s music scene. No, POWERLIFTER didn’t get together because they saw an emerging market and wanted to capitalize on it. POWERLIFTER didn’t even get together to try and make back some of the money they’ve spent on equipment.
POWERLIFTER got together because they wanted to party.
Only officially together since last October, POWERLIFTER consists of longtime friends Martin Swiggart and Matthew Wiseman, while Kevin Wildt (of
polarOPPOSITEbear) often provides backup support on lights, smoke, and media. Last year they were sitting around and showing off their latest musical creations when Martin showed Mathew some music that he had made with computer software a few years ago – music that sounded like it was coming out of a Game Boy – and Matthew saw that they were on to something. They quickly moved away from making their music on computers, and Martin began writing songs with a special cartridge on his actual Game Boy. Matthew writes lyrics and provides vocals for the tracks that are filtered through a vocal pedal, giving him a somewhat distorted, electric sounding voice.
While this genre of music (made with old video game systems) is actually called chiptune, the guys of POWERLIFTER prefer to label themselves as “party music.” “This stuff is accessible, but I still feel like we’re pushing down a few boundaries.”
It’s an amazing thing seeing POWERLIFTER play a live show. Martin and Matthew’s life motto (and song title) F#ck life, party time! oozes a
Friday night sort of charm that infects their audience and has them moving to the music and downing their drinks. It helps that the pair has years of performance and band experience behind them, not to mention have very little equipment, meaning they’re often able to set up and tear down in just ten minutes or less. “We’re the most efficient band I’ve ever seen. We could tour in a car!”
Having just finished recording their first full-length album, the party-loving duo is already eager to get the next one to the presses. “If we stay at this pace, we’ll be able to put out a new record every season,” says Mathew.
POWERLIFTER’s first album should be finalized at the time of this printing and will be available both for free online and for purchase on cassette tape at their shows. Yes, on cassette tape. They recorded their album at Ping-Pong on Wheels studio here in Wichita and are working with the 5nakefork tape label to get their physical media out.
When I asked POWERLIFTER to describe what they sound like to someone off off the street, they had two responses. The first – Katy Perry. And, as much as I’d like to leave you with that, their second and only slightly more serious response is much more informative:
“It’s like the best video game you’ve ever played with all of your friends over. And you can get completely drunk and it’s still fun. You’re at the best party ever.”
Follow POWERLIFTER on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Powerlifterband, where you’ll find the link to their MySpace site.
-DUSTIN DECKARD of Naked City Magazine Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
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