Tis the Season!

Congratulations to Adrian Smith, winner of our 11th Day of Geekmas giveaway! Adrian got a set of Musician’s Dice, a Star Wars iPhone case and a $50 Sears gift card. I will simply assume that those helped to make Adrian’s holiday season a little brighter. If that’s not the case, just don’t tell me. It would totally spoil my holiday high.

On our final day of Geekmas, we have pulled out all the stops. Once again we’ve got a Star Wars iPhone case and a set of Musician’s Dice on the line, but today it’s joined by a $200 Sears gift card! But wait; there’s more. Today’s winner will also take home an HP MediaSmart Server EX490.

Yes, you read that right. All these phenomenal prizes can be yours with a simple email. Because we are the GeekDads, and that is how we roll.

To get the skinny on these grand Geekmas treats, give today’s GeekDad HipTrax Stocking Stuffer a listen. There you’ll discover the secret code word needed to enter today’s contest drawing. Use it as your message title when you email your submission to geekdad.hiptrax@gmail.com by 11:59 PM EST, and you’ll be in the running for all the aforementioned swag! You’ll also get to hear Jonathan Coulton’s “Chiron Beta Prime;” so, in that regard, everyone is a winner.

Subscribe to the GeekDad podcast in iTunes (see the button on the sidebar), or directly through the RSS feed. You can also download GeekDad HipTrax Stocking Stuffer #12 via this link, or simply listen in the embedded player below.

The official HipTrax theme song was created by Snake Eyes. He has a corncob pipe, a button nose and two eyes made out of coal.

Frontalot, known for tax purposes as Damian Hess, began the long road to geek superstardom in San Francisco before moving to New England to attend Wesleyan University, eventually permanently relocating to that mecca of both hip-hop and nerds, New York. Along the way he rose to (internet) prominence as part of the Song Fight! community. Perhaps more importantly to his musical development, Front found a friend and long-time collaborator in Gaby “Gminor7” Alter at Berkley’s Emerald Rain Productions, which both allowed him to hone his understanding of the ancient art of the pop narrative and made him the only known rapper capable of non-ironically admitting his roots in musical theater.

In honor of Damian’s special day I could do many things. I could point you to my debut nerdcore interview, a meeting that not only cemented my position as chronicler of geeky music but also served as the first of many delightful interactions with MC Frontalot. I could call your attention to his Nerdcore Rising documentary, a stirring recollection of Front’s first nation-wide tour and the birth of the nerdcore hip-hop movement. I could direct you to his newest single, the freely downloadable title track from his most recent album Final Boss. Hell, I could even reveal the secret location of a rather embarrassing college-era picture of the aforementioned Hess recently posted by friend and bass player Brandon “Blak Lotus” Patton.

But why do that when I can show you this divine creature in his natural habitat?

So let us pause on Front’s 36th birthday to relive his triumphant return to the Penny Arcade Expo stage earlier this year. Picture it: the concert is already running behind schedule, and a packed house of nerdcore faithful is informed that MC Frontalot has been unavoidably detained. In lieu of the scheduled entertainment, Mr. Wil Wheaton has graciously offered to regale them with a little Rock Band action until such a time as the headliner can take the stage. But then, from behind the curtain, a familiar shape emerges.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Diseases of Yore, New Single by MC Frontalot Featuring Jonathan Coulton (laughingsquid.com)

Jonathan Coulton, classy.

As I’m sitting here, listening to “The Future Soon” by geek rock troubadour Jonathan Coulton, I have to remember that while it might be the future soon, it is currently the present, or it was just the present and now it’s the past. Or the present was the past and that past is now the future. Really, there is no present, not that we can perceive anyway. That is how the music and satirical lyrical styling of Jonathan Coulton makes my brain feel, and that is why I’d like to take a moment out of my day and on behalf of all us at GeekDad wish Jonathan Coulton a very happy undisclosed numbered (39th) birthday!

Unlike many comical or tongue in cheek artists, when you listen to Coulton’s music you get the feeling that he’s completely serious about his subject matter. While there are plenty of in-jokes and sideways thoughts, to me it never seems like Coulton thinks he’s making a joke. With his mix of guitar driven folk and calm lyrics, Coulton creates believable tales of strange love, robotic housekeepers, the joy of talking squirrels and their suggestions of lovemaking outdoors, what it’s like to be Tom Cruise and the rational negotiations of zombies.

Coulton hit super geek stardom with his “Thing a Week” project, where he crafted an original tune every week for a year. Out of this came four great albums and the mega hit “Code Monkey” which was used as the theme song for the show of the same name. He’s held on to his geek cred with constant touring and his website where you can listen to all of his music before purchasing, or downloading some tracks for free. Solidly cementing Coulton in geek lore however was his track “Still Alive” created for the Valve game Portal. Today doesn’t seem like the day to talk about there not being any cake though.

So happy birthday Jonathan, from all of us here at GeekDad and all the music loving geeks around the world! Including Neil Gaiman (who celebrated a birthday last week) who posted this nugget on his Twitter account this morning: “Today we recall the birth of @jonathancoulton, & sing mournful songs about women kidnapped by robotic giant squid-zombies in his memory.”

Here’s a great Anime video mash-up between Coulton’s “Code Monkey” and “Black Heaven.” Or check out this fan made video of Coulton’s “Having a Party” celebrating his birthday.

For the record, my favorite Jonathan Coulton song has to be “Kenesaw Mountain Landis” because it uses banjo and creates a great fantasy tale around a true Baseball legend. What is your favorite Coulton song? Leave it in the comments or just general birthday wishes!