When Footscray ‘chiptune’ musician Alex Yabsley first began dabbling with the musical potential of the Nintendo Game Boy console, little did he expect a decade-long journey at the forefront of the craft.
Under the musical moniker Dot.AY, Yabsley has forged a reputation as one of the globe’s leading exponents of the genre, pushing the technical and sound limits of the humble gaming machine.
Yabsley will be squeezing as much knowledge as he can into workshops he is leading as part of CHANGES, a brand new music, tech and ideas festival coming to Melbourne on July 4 and 5.
His interest in chipmusic was awoken during his Bachelor of Music Technology, before a journey to the genre’s spiritual home in New York left him well and truly hooked.
“I definitely didn’t intend to become ‘the Game Boy music guy’, but it’s just something I keep coming back to,” he said.
Part of the attraction to the form for Yabsley is the limitations of the technology, forcing him to draw as much as he can out of the four channels of the console, using specially developed software.
He brings to the form inspiration from a wide range of musical areas including electronic music, pop and hip hop.
One of the things that keeps Yabsley involved in chiptune is the buzz of playing live to new
audiences.
His career has seen him collaborate with artists such as Amanda Palmer, support international acts including Crystal Castles and Girl Talk, and play shows in musical meccas New York and Tokyo.
He said audience always seem amazed that such a big sound and heavy bass can be driven by “a guy up on stage with a couple of Game Boys”.
Another attraction is the genre’s community spirit and sharing culture, one of the reasons he
jumped at the chance to lead the workshops as part of CHANGES when organisers invited him to be a part of the festival.
CHANGES is bringing together music labels, agencies, organisations and performers for more than 80 events across Melbourne’s leading venues, as well as live performances by leading lights of the Melbourne music scene.
Further details: www.changes.melbourne
