Photo: Anton Olsen
Tesla Coils, Jacob’s Ladders, and even the simple Van De Graff generators make me happy. Throw some Pulse Rate Modulation at a solid state Tesla Coil and I can only be described as giddy.
My first chance to see ArcAttack perform was at the mini Maker Faire last year in Dallas. They had brought their small coils and performed a few songs per set throughout the day. While the show wasn’t without some technical delays, it was very cool and certainly worth the wait. The kids and I sat in on two different sets and enjoyed it immensely.
Photo By: Anton Olsen
Being from Austin, it was only natural the ArcAttack play at the Maker Faire Austin (MFA) last October. Over the weekend I found time to sit in on half a dozen sets. Their show had obviously matured with more songs, a bit more showmanship, and very few (if any) technical difficulties.
Through a series of lucky coincidences Parsec contacted the GeekDads about a private show and interview. At that exact hour I was discussing entertainment for the VEX Robotics Championship with the guys at work. A few emails, a hand-off to marketing, and ArcAttack is booked to play the team party.
Read more and get some MP3s of the performance after the jump.
ArcAttack played 3 sets through the evening lasting about 25-30 minutes each. I wish now that I’d taken better notes on what they played and when, but I was enjoying the show too much. From what I recall, the first set was similar to the sets they played at MFA. The second set rocked out with the theme from Airwolf, a cool medley of arcade and console game themes, and the Dr Who theme song.
For the third and final set Parsec donned the chain mail suit and helmet to become the human Faraday cage. Attracting the arcs to his fingers and head, he danced with the lightning while the band rocked out on the guitar, keyboard, and bass. The show has come a long ways in the last year and I look forward to what their talented minds cook up in the future.
If you get a chance to see ArcAttack in person, don’t pass it up.
As a bonus I have ripped the audio from some HD video a friend shot that night and mixed it into a mini bootleg album. I’ve posted the MP3s to my own site and will provide a torrent as soon as I can get it announced on a few trackers. ArcAttack Bootleg 2009 VRC World Championship on AntonOlsen.com.
