8 Bit

There are many artists that share this name. 1. 8-bit is an alias of Naoki Maeda. 2. From Highland Park, California via a galaxy far away comes hip-hop crazies 8-bit. Both producers and recording artists, 8-bit taps into old school video games, not old-school records to create their own ghetto-electro chip music. Eclectic superstar Beck hand picked 8-bit to craft the sound of his Gameboy Variations EP - the #1 iTunes album of the week upon its debut. 8-bit tracked, mixed, and produced the tracks to create "Ghettochip Malfunction (Hell Yes)" and Gameboy/Homeboy (Que Onda Guero). The EP received critical acclaim with international press and airplay. The song "Ghettochip Malfunction" was also released on Becks album to Guerolito, the sister album to Guero. 8-bit draws from the early party days of the Beastie Boys, the visual acuity of Gorrilaz, and the genre bending qualities of Devo - exemplified in their brilliant music video for "Drunk" and the elaborate stop-animation collage video for "I-Deez", which was nominated for 2005 Music Video Production Association (MVPA) "Video of the Year Under $25, 000" along side videos from Death Cab for Cutie and Beck. The robotic rap crew of Anti-log, LeFrost, Robo-T, and Spacey-K mix old school video game sounds with deft beats and floating rap lyrics that are a clear ode to the early years of West Coast gangsta-rap. In the classic tag-team style 8-bit raps mainly about their preoccupations stuck here in limbo on planet earth: old school Nintendo video games, taco-trucks, and the constant need for alcohol to fuel their 'robot-thug lifestyle' in the Northeast LA barrio they now call home. Simultaneously retro and futuristic, the innovative sound and arresting visual presentation 8-bit throws down is unlike anything in modern hip-hop. 8-bit racked up another accolade in June of 2005, winning best "Hip-Hop/Rap Artist" at the Los Angeles Weekly's Music Awards. In a night that set out to honor LA music luminaries like Brian Wilson, X, and Rodney (on the ROQ) Bingenheimer, it was 8-bits performance that stole the show - as the press covering the event and huge street buzz that followed verified. As at home in a punk club, rock club or dance club, it is the live venue where the strange world of 8-bit transforms one from curious observer to fanatic fan. 8-bit's live show has become legendary as it has unpredictable. 8-bit plays consistently, touring Europe and North America on the strength of its self released records and they signed to Side Out/Village Again in Japan. The eclectic nature of their live performance have garnered a reflectively eclectic grouping of fans from acts such as Beck, The Flaming Lips, Ima Robot, The Mars Volta, Ugly Duckling, Sugarcult, The Used, Rancid, and Black Flag. They will release their third album in time for Christmas 2006. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.