The protomes
| The protomes | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| origin |
 Murfreesboro, Tennessee
|
| Genre (s) | Rock , rock opera , hard rock , indie rock , Nintendocore |
| founding | 2003 |
| Website | protomen.com |
| Current occupation | |
| Commander B. Hawkins Raul Panther III Murphy Weller Sir Dr. Robert Bakker Shock Magnum Gambler Kirkdouglas Reanimator K.ILROY |
|
The Protomen is an American rock band from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, founded in 2003 . She is known for her concept albums inspired by the Mega Man computer game series .
Career
The band was formed in Murfreesboro, Tennessee and is currently based in Nashville . The artist names of the members are allusions to films, songs and popular cultural figures. They themselves call themselves storytellers a " rock 'n' roll - fable ", but are not themselves characters in the stories.
Most of the band members were Middle Tennessee State University graduates . They formed a group when they recorded music relevant to the exams together. They gave their first concert in April 2004. In 2005 most of the members finished their studies and moved to the "Music City" Nashville.
In 2009, the singer Panther said in an interview:
“We basically gathered up all of our good friends from the local rock bands of Murfreesboro, tied ourselves together, and tried to walk. And somehow it worked. At the time, we noticed a void in rock and roll. A hole that could only really be filled with grown men and women painting up like robots and playing some fierce and furious rock music based on a 1980s video game. We were fairly certain no one else was going to fill that hole. But, by God, it's filled now. You can thank us later. "
“Basically we got all our good friends from local Murfreesboro rock bands together, tied ourselves up, and tried to leave. And somehow it worked. At that point we saw a void in rock 'n' roll. A hole that could only be filled by adult men and women, painted as robots, playing passionate and wild rock music based on computer games from the 1980s. We were relatively certain that no one else would fill this hole. But for God's sake, it's filled now. You can thank us later. "
Some members also play in other bands from the Murfreesboro / Nashville region.
Concept and themes
The Protomen's works are inspired by the first six Mega Man computer games for the Nintendo Entertainment System . The franchise has a coherent storyline between games, manga, and anime ; which the band adds to a dark, dystopian world within the story. The Protomen does not want to stick to the plot of the original, instead it takes the story as a starting point and borrows superficial characteristics and characters.
The group aims to create a three-part story. The first two acts have already been published in album form. The finale is supposed to end tragically .
Act I (The Protomen)
In the first act, the band's debut album , Dr. Wily is portrayed as an Orwellian ruler of a dystopian city full of people who, out of fear, do not rebel against him. Dr. Light creates the "perfect man, an invincible machine", Proto Man, to fight for the liberation of the city. However, Proto Man is killed by the overwhelming military might of Wily. Defeated and desperate, Dr. Light has a second son, Mega Man, whom he wants to keep away from the war. Mega Man runs away from home and confronts his resuscitated brother in an apocalyptic battle. The band describes the music on the album as "the sound of the end of the world" and bridges the genres of chiptune and hard rock , with an emphasis on distorted 8-bit synthesizers and electronic instruments.
The founding member of the band Commander said of the first act that it should be the counterpart of what music teachers and other students were teaching them and therefore not sound flawless and perfect. The album was recorded in analog mode over two years in various recording studios in Murfreesboro . The first recorded song was Due Vendetta in April 2003. The album was produced by former Protomen member Heath Who Hath No Name.
Act II (Act II: The Father of Death)
_-_2014-10-21_(11).jpg)
On the second album, a prequel to Act I in terms of history , the band worked with Meat Loaf producer Alan Shacklock. The second act details Albert Wily's rise to power, the rivalry between him and Thomas Light, and the tragic events that led to Wily's rise to power. The clearer sound of act two was intended by the band to reflect "before the bomb fell" at the time. As a result, Act II: The Father of Death has a wider range of musical styles and instruments, with references from Ennio Morricone to Bruce Springsteen and Shacklock's own band Babe Ruth . The mastering was done by Grammy winner Richard Dodd.
At the end of December 2016, the band released the short film Light Up the Night , named after a song from their second album. In the almost 17-minute long music video, James Ransone plays the leading role of the young rebel, directed by Matt Sundin and Caspar Newbolt. The accompanying EP, like the film, was released on December 23rd. A vinyl version of the album was released in spring 2018 and reached number 24 on the American Billboard vinyl album charts.
Cover albums
At their concerts, in addition to their rock opera, the band plays cover versions of songs from the 1970s and 1980s. They are usually about heroism , struggle and self-determination , which The Protomen also covers in their own songs. On December 10, 2010, The Protomen performed together with the Nashville-based band Evil Bebos at their last concert. Evil Bebos only covered songs by Black Sabbath , while The Protomen only played songs by Queen . The concert was recorded, mastered and announced on April 19, 2012 as a live album entitled Present: A Night of Queen . The album was officially released on June 1, 2012.
Already in November 2010 the band announced the work on an independent album of their cover songs. The first recordings for this were made in early 2011 with the producer of Act II , Alan Shacklock. On June 12, 2014, The Protomen announced that they would give an exclusive EP when they performed on the Warped Tour 2014, which should be considered a forerunner to the following album. The EP was printed as a download code on fake cinema tickets from the fictional film The Cover Up . On January 23, 2015 the album The Cover Up was released for participants of MAGFest 13. One day later it could be officially pre-ordered.
Style and Influences
The style is influenced by “actors like Syd Mead , films like Eddie and the Cruisers and Streets in Flames , books like 1984 and Atlas throws the world off .” Other influences are the films of Sergio Leone and the bands Radiohead , Styx , Toto , Queen as well as Alabama .
Members
Current occupation
- Raul Panther III - vocals, various instruments
- Murphy Weller - bass synthesizer , electric bass , drums
- Commander B. Hawkins - synthesizer, vocoder , drums
- Sir Dr. Robert Bakker - electric guitar
- Shock Magnum - electric guitar
- Gambler Kirkdouglas - vocals / choir
- Reanimator - drums
- KILROY - various instruments
former members
- Doug Fetterman - guitar
- The Merchant - vocals / choir
- The Keeper - synthesizer, vocoder
- The Replicant - Trumpet
- Demon Barber - drums
- The Dragon - drums
- Scartoe Gleason - guitar
- The Repeater - vocals / choir
- The Keymaster - drums
- Heath Who Hath No Name - guitar
- Cobra T. Washington - guitar
- Lazer - vocals / choir
- The Gunslinger - guitar
- Ellen Aim - vocals / choir
- Master Blaster - Trumpet
- Nightwalker T. Ranger - vocals / choir, trumpet
- Neon Leon - guitar
- TURBO LOVER - vocals, various instruments
- Ringo Segundo - guitar
Discography
Albums
- 2005: The Protomen
- 2009: Act II: The Father of Death
- 2015: The Cover Up
Live albums
- 2012: Present: A Night of Queen
Soundtrack albums
- 2013: William Shakespeare Presents: Terminator the Second
EPs
- 2014: Cover Up EP
- 2016: Light Up the Night
Singles
- 2008: Father of Death / No Easy Way Out
- 2012: I Drove All Night (cover of the song of the same name by Cyndi Lauper )
- 2015: This City Made Us
swell
- ↑ a b c Andrew Johnson: How the Protomen kidnapped and forced me to ride around Murfreesboro blindfolded for 20 minutes just for a one-on-one interview. In: Sidelines. College Media Network, April 20, 2005, archived from the original on February 25, 2012 ; accessed on January 4, 2017 (English).
- ↑ Rachel Edidin: These Guys Made a Rock Opera About Mega Man - And It's Awesome. In: Wired . Condé Nast Verlag , December 9, 2013, accessed January 4, 2017 (English).
- ↑ Jason Hall: ALL about ... The Protomen. In: kentwired.com. The Kent Stater, TV2, February 16, 2006, accessed January 4, 2017 .
- ^ A b c Erik Nather: Interview With "The Protomen", A Mega Man Rock Opera. (No longer available online.) In: Joystick Division. Voice Media Group Inc., October 5, 2009, archived from the original on October 8, 2011 ; accessed on January 5, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ SEASON 1 :: Protomen Interview - 6/18/09. In: Nerdy Show. The Nerdy Show Network, April 19, 2010, accessed January 4, 2017 .
- ↑ Murphy Weller: Happy belated Birthday to The Protomen (publicly). On 4/22/04 the first live performance happened as a makeup project for a friend's grade. Twitter , April 23, 2009, accessed January 4, 2017 .
- ↑ a b Justin Strong: On Video Game Cover Bands. Catchy Name News September 6, 2010, archived from the original on November 12, 2012 ; accessed on January 4, 2017 (English).
- ↑ Patrick Gann: Just Who Are The Protomen? Let's find out! In: Original Sound Version. February 1, 2011, accessed January 5, 2017 .
- ↑ Rick Clark: Nashville Skyline. In: Mix. NewBay Media, LLC., January 4, 2006, accessed January 5, 2017 .
- ^ Cap Blackard: First Look: The Protomen's 16-minute short film Light Up the Night. In: Consequence of Sound. September 8, 2016, accessed March 1, 2017 .
- ↑ D. Patrick Rodgers: Watch Protomen's Phantasmagorical Short Film 'Light Up the Night'. In: Nashville Scene. SouthComm Communications, December 27, 2016, accessed March 1, 2017 .
- ^ Will Harrison: The Protomen - Light Up the Night | Video / short film. In: The Unheard Nerd. January 4, 2017, accessed March 1, 2017 .
- ^ The Protomen Act II: The Father Of Death Chart History. In: Billboard . Eldridge Industries, accessed April 21, 2018 .
- ↑ The Protomen and Evil Bebos Tribute to Queen & Black Sabbath at Exit / In, 12/10/10. In: Nashville Scene. SouthComm Communications, December 13, 2010, accessed March 1, 2017 .
- ↑ Awesome News And Bad News. In: protomen.com. The Protomen, April 2, 2012, accessed March 1, 2017 .
- ↑ Victory World Tour… .pt. 1… North America. In: protomen.com. The Protomen, June 12, 2014, accessed March 1, 2017 .
- ↑ Finally. In: protomen.com. The Protomen, January 23, 2015, accessed March 1, 2017 .
Web links
- Official website (English)
- The protomes at MusicBrainz (English)
- The protomes at Discogs (English)