Do you have a story behind your artist name?
Biff: Our main instrument is the Game Boy (which creates chiptune music), so video games will always go hand-in-hand with Battlemode. We are named after a gameplay mode in “Mario Kart 64” called Battle Mode, in which players compete, and fight… but in the spirit of fun. Battlemode ended up being a good metaphor for how we express music, and navigate the music industry. It’s competitive, laboring, and sometimes frustrating, but ultimately it’s just chiptune, and we’re just trying to have a good time!
Tell us a bit about your music journey. How has it shaped you?
Biff: Before Sam joined, we were a different trio under the name Triheart. It was a chiptune, rap, and violin band. It made zero sense, but we gave it our best shot. We had everything working against us: Our music was weird, we were still growing into performing live, and we had absolutely no idea how to navigate the music industry. Every little aspect felt like a battle: How do we get our music on Spotify? What’s a stage plot? What’s the difference between mixing and mastering? Not unlike many bands out there… we really had to figure out everything ourselves.
Before COVID, it started to feel like we were making headway. We got to open for MC Chris, we started recording in professional studios with experienced producers, and we had a sold out EP release show. Potential was evident. Of course, COVID killed any momentum we might have been experiencing. We didn’t translate well into the pandemic Twitch/online music scene and one of our band members decided to take a step back from the project, ultimately dissolving Triheart.
During COVID, I was able to get my Master’s in Music Business from Berklee Online – which really helped demystify the music industry. Looking to rebrand, Astro and I were able to evolve into something that remained unique, but felt far less confusing than our previous project.
We still have a lot of work to do. Everything is still a battle, but the fighting feels less challenging than before. Triheart taught us how to fend for ourselves, and how to move with grace. We have no expectations from others, and we look to ourselves when trying to reach our goals. Since no one is chasing us down (yet) for label deals, or festivals – we still do a lot on our own. We organize all our own large-scale events, we created our own DIY venue, we bring arcade cabinets to almost all of our shows, etc. Simultaneously, we also now have an amazing team of people (i.e. producer, PR, street team) helping us elevate the Battlemode brand and the chiptune timbre. We will always have a DIY mindset – but it would be nice to not be so DIY for the rest of our lives.
Sam: I’ve been playing solo with a couple of Game Boys for a long time, and playing in bands for even longer. Playing and writing songs on my own, with Electric Street Queens, with collaborator JANX, my pal Dave Richardson, and now Battlemode, has definitely forced me to fit into different roles and take varying approaches to making music. It’s all been fun, and I’m psyched to be making music with Biff and Astro now! Chiptune unites us!
How would you describe your sound to someone unfamiliar with it?
Biff: If we’re trying to keep it short — we just tell people, “it’s video game music!” If we’re going a little deeper, the sound is about combining human elements with electronic ideas – we’re kind of like a cyborg band.
What drew you to the genre /instruments you’re playing right now?
Biff: As a kid, The NES “Mega Man 2” scores drew me into chiptune. The “Bubble Man Stage” score holds its weight against any Mozart, or Beethoven melody.
Later on… Anamanaguchi’s scores for “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game”, broke the chiptune mold. Anamanaguchi (a live performing band, with actual LPs, and music videos) was able to get chiptune off the Nintendo, and into the real world. Anamanaguchi helped me (and so many others) realize chiptune could be so much more than a Mario soundtrack.
Additional inspiration shoutout to Wendy Carlos of “Switched On Bach”, and the “Tron” soundtrack.
Sam: I’ve been playing guitar since 8th grade. I was drawn to it because I loved music and wanted to write songs and my best friend Dave Richardson played too! The obsession with making music with a Game Boy came much later, and I’m drawn to it because I love the way it sounds, and I think it works really well with how I think about music and structuring songs. The M8 is in the same universe as the gameboy, in terms of how it works with writing music and putting songs together, but the sounds and music it is capable of producing is in a different realm. It just sounds so cool, and I think it meshes really well with everything else we’re doing. I’m especially excited about one of our newer works-in-progress, which features all three of us on vocals, guitar, the foundation on the M8, and then Biff on the Game Boy talkbox. Honestly, I’m not sure the world is ready for it yet.
What inspires you to write music?
Biff: It sounds like a joke – but I’ve decidedly dedicated my life to chiptune. With inspiration from when American composer Aaron Copland was trying to find the “American Sound”, I believe chiptune will play a role in reflecting the modern technological era. It won’t be Battlemode who scores the landmark 21st century composition — but it would be nice if we could have some small influence on whoever does compose that piece.
Sam: I don’t feel like it’s even a choice. If I think back on the saddest times in my life, they were all when I wasn’t writing music. Chiptune has definitely revitalized my approach to writing music, and composing with a gameboy seems to be a perfect fit for me. Listening to a really great song or album gets me so psyched to work on my own music.
Would you tell us about your current project, album/EP, or song you’re promoting?
Astro: “Just Pretend” is about two people starting a possible new relationship, but still having reservations because of past love trauma. They ultimately decide to just pretend that stuff doesn’t matter and to live for the moment. The theme and lyrics were inspired by a relationship I was in where we both were scarred by the past, but we wanted to pretend we were normal people, and could have a fresh start.
Biff: Musically, the center of gravity on “Just Pretend” is the chiptune solo section. The idea was to present a digital pop song that doesn’t initially reek of chiptune. The solo acts like a hair-metal guitar solo – slightly virtuosic, dramatic, and shows-off what a Game Boy can really do.
What do you want listeners to take away from listening to your music?
Biff: I would like listeners to take away the timbre of chiptune. Building on what Anamanguchi was able to accomplish (getting chiptune out of the Nintendo, and into the real world), my musical goal is to get listeners to think about chiptune as a real world sound. Chiptune will always be conceived by video games, but my goal is to widen the gap between chiptune and video games.
Who are your top three artists right now? If that’s not a fair question, what’s your favorite song right now?
Sam: Ooof, they change all the time but lately I’ve been rotating between St. Vincent, Jeff Rosenstock, and nmlstyl.
Biff: My top three artists will always be David Bowie, Simon & Garfunkel, and …David Bowie. BUT! One of my main current influences is Waterparks (particularly the lead singer Awsten Knight). Waterparks combine color, humor, and listenability into a single package – a full music package I strive for Battlemode to someday hold.
What’s the easiest way for fans to connect with you?
Sam: We’re most active on Instagram (@battlemodemusic), but the easiest way (and our favorite way) to connect with us is to come to the shows and say hi!
Homepage: https://battlemodemusic.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/battlemodemusic/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BattlemodeMusic
Bandcamp: https://battlemodemusic.bandcamp.com/
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/38Tgg9D2XnpKvUC5tjydon?si=z00FK3bUTtezxFww2qwt6w
What’s next for you?
Sam: We’re working on some new music, and are really psyched for our show at the Hackers event on September 15 in Somerville. Biff can tell you more about that!
Biff: We have tons of releases and shows coming up, but our two major event highlights are:
Hack The Planet Day on September 15 – a 35mm screening of “Hackers” (1995) with a guest appearance from original actor, Renoly Santiago, and visual/audio pre-show by Vkash, Wubson, and Battlemode.
Anything else you’d like to add or let us know about?
Here is a hot scoop: Boston Bit Down March 6 to 8, 2025 – a three-day chiptune festival with 30 chiptune acts representing different facets within the genre! We haven’t officially announced it yet!!! Moosic gets to break the news!
Bio:
Battlemode is the vibrant and irrepressibly energetic work of mismatched but inseparable friends Astro, Biff, and Sam. Together they create dynamic electro-pop that embraces sounds of the past in order to look forward; incorporating the glitchy 8-bit chiptune sounds that accompanied adolescent days spent playing Game Boys, and reinvigorating them amongst contemporary synth.
