A while ago Anamanaguchi blew people away by fusing rock music with chiptune. Since then, they have inspired many other bands to redefine chiprock even further: Melt Channel, Slime Girls & Astroskeleton to name a few. Villainest are the latest band to come out to do the same with their latest album, ‘A good day to try hard’.

‘Villainest’ are a ‘sega mega drive-based party rock band’ starting up in 2013 from Toronto, Canada. Villainest’s style is combination of keytars, hard rock guitar & the square waves from the mega drive. ‘A good day to try hard’ is their 4th release and features 8 tracks, half of which are their sega mega drive counterparts.

A Good Day To Try Hard by Villainest

We kick off with Villainest’s title track, ‘A good day to try hard,’ aptly inspired by the fifth installment of ‘Die Hard 5‘, which Villainest cites as coming with ‘critical acclaim’. The track begins slowly, using shimmering resonating noise as build up along with squares sounds & the screeching vocals of guitarist, James Harding, on the top. The intro is very atmospheric and creepy, building up to the the hook of the song, a real funky keytar lead. It really reminds me of certain Egyptian styles that have been used in films such as Indiana Jones. ‘A good day to try hard’ really shows off what the band is made of, giving you a taste of the ‘sega synth’, guitar & keytar as well as the unique crunchy, spooky style that Villainest have crafted throughout the album.

A Good Day To Try Hard by Villainest

‘The machine’ is another track which is both atmospheric & mysterious and also down right creepy. Starting with punchy chords, drums & leads straight from the sega mega drive, it’s a nice introduction into what the FM synth is capable of. This is interrupted at 1.10 with blaring distortion & joint singing from the band; it’s harrowing, but oh so awesome. Off the entire EP, this is probably the most powerful song, featuring a truly strong chorus that is complimented by some energetic fills & and one face melting guitar solo. ‘The machine’ really reminds me of Faith No More’s song, Midlife Crisis, mostly due to its creepiness & powerful hooks throughout.

A Good Day To Try Hard by Villainest

The final song, ‘Peach’, is completely different from it’s prior spooky tracks, as it’s more lighter, sticking to major chords & a bouncy beat sequenced from the sega mega drive. The distorted spoken word lyrics really promote the style that Villainest were going for, as well as the funky short chorus that’s absolute treat to hear time & time again. Overall ‘Peach’ is an absolute blast, with it’s style reminiscent of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Another cracking EP to add to the best albums of 2016, Villainest’s ‘A good day to try hard’ features so many outstanding tracks that you’ll find yourself quickly becoming a fan. Not only that, but to have every track re-done as a 16bit Megadrive remix is an absolute want.

villainest.com | Twitter | Soundcloud | Bandcamp | Facebook

A Good Day To Try Hard by Villainest

This has been a blog post from Chip Bit Sid, a UK based Chiptune Blogger. Along with monthly features here on The ChipWIN Blog, I post music every Sunday and play key tracks of each review every 2nd Sunday of each month on GameFace at 6pm UK GMT. To get in touch, please message via the social media links below!

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Soundcloud | Gameface

Chip! Bit! Sid! Soundcloud Group ~ I listen to every song and give love to each one, because all chipmusic needs it!