Bands premiering songs and albums on websites are a standard practice these days. You make an album, look up a music website you like and then you pitch to them about hopefully writing about your music and exclusively unleashing it for the whole world to see. Some bands are opting for a different course, and trying something completely out of the ordinary. Like video games.
Providence electro-punk duo Math The Band, composed of Kevin Steinhauser and Justine Mainville, always have a habit of pushing their sound to new heights. Enter the next phase of the project, so to speak: Math The Band The Band, where Steinhauser and Mainville have joined up with Weak Teeth’s Neil King and Jon Pagano, Lame Genie’s Jeff McGowan and Huge Face’s Max Holbrook to create a punk rock onslaught. They’ll be celebrating the release of a new album at The Middle East in Cambridge tonight with The New Highway Hymnal, Bearstronaut, Bright Primate, and “improvisational aerobics singsongs” crew Aerobics, but you can check out the track “Why Didn’t You Get A Haircut,” a re-boot of a 2010 tune with a full backing band and a whole new dimension, while playing the video game Project Maiden.
Created by Kevin Cole, the narrative bound puzzle-platformer is one of a kind due to that the character you play as, going by the name Imogen Broca, has to lose her powers in order to progress in the game. For a 2-D side scroller the graphics are actually pretty nice and the gameplay is very fun. Math The Band The Band are a fun band to begin with, so it only makes sense that they’re involved in a kickass video game. Along with having a song of theirs in the game, the band themselves are actually in Project Maiden as well.
Before you head to The Middle East tonight, check out the game and play it a bit. While you’re at the show, grab a copy of the album from the full blown arsenal that is Math The Band The Band. It’ll electrify.
MATH THE BAND THE BAND + THE NEW HIGHWAY HYMNAL + BEARSTRONAUT + BRIGHT PRIMATE + AEROBICS :: Thursday, October 1 at the Middle East, 472 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge, MA :: 8 p.m., 18-plus, $10 day of show :: Advance tickets :: Facebook event page
