Freezepop (band)
Encyclopedia
Freezepop is an American electronic
band from Boston
, Massachusetts
. They formed in 1999 with Liz Enthusiasm
, Sean T. Drinkwater
, and The Duke of Pannekoeken, an alias for composer Kasson Crooker
. As of December 2009, the current lineup includes Enthusiasm, Drinkwater, Robert John "Bananas" Foster and Christmas Disco-Marie Sagan. The band is named after the frozen snack
, and the members describe their music as "sweet and cold and fruity and plastic-y".
Several of the band's songs have appeared in video games, including the Harmonix
titles Frequency, Amplitude, Karaoke Revolution
, Phase, the Guitar Hero
series, and the Rock Band
series. Their music has also been included in Downhill Domination
and Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix 3
. Freezepop songs continue to appear in certain Harmonix titles. Former member Kasson Crooker currently works as a senior producer at Harmonix.
The group is popular with college students in Boston and has become part of the US synthpop scene.
, a Yamaha QY70, which has often been mistaken for a Game Boy
. On more recent albums, they have expanded their toolkit due to a lack of variety in the sounds the QY70 provided, but it still remains an important part of the composing process. The release of Future Future Future Perfect
only features the QY70 in a single song, that being "Pop Music Is Not a Crime".
In addition to Freezepop, Kasson, who had previously been in fellow Boston
band Splashdown
, still records as a solo artist Symbion Project. Drinkwater is also a member of the bands Lifestyle and Karacter, and worked with the band Polystar on their debut album. Enthusiasm appears on the song "Boom Box Chic" by Los Angeles
-based LeMans Electro.
In addition to dozens of remixes released over the years, Freezepop released a remix of their song "Shark Attack" done by chiptune
band 8 Bit Weapon
in October 2007. The remix was done with a Nintendo Entertainment System
and a Commodore 64
computer. Robotkid
also used a similar approach in his Lameboy mix of "Science Genius Girl" that featured the Game Boy audio software Little Sound DJ.
A recurring theme in Freezepop's music is references to science, technology, and mathematics. As examples, the hi-phive mix of "Science Genius Girl" features Enthusiasm reciting the first thirty digits of Phi
. Additionally, the "Robotron 2002" All Your Base Are Belong to Us remix by DJ Nebula pays homage to the Internet meme All your base are belong to us
.
Freezepop was arrested in Canada in November 2006 for trying to enter the country under false pretenses
. Harmonix pokes fun at them for this in the loading screens for their songs, in Rock Band and Rock Band 2
.
On June 4, 2009, it was announced on Freezepop's official website that founding member the Duke of Pannekoeken (originally the Duke of Candied Apples, as well as the Duke of Belgian Waffles, all three pseudonym
s of Crooker), would be leaving the band. Crooker stated, "My responsibilities at Harmonix making games continue to increase which takes away from my time and energy to compose and go out on the road to play shows." He also added that he had plans to focus on his side endeavor Symbion Project while also doing Freezepop remixes in the future. His last show as a member of the band was at the Penny Arcade Expo
2009 in Seattle on September 5.
Along with bands such as The Aquabats
, Bad Credit, and Slowdraw the Hungry Eskimo, their music is featured in the comedy series Mega64
, which also produced the music video for Freezepop's song "Brainpower
".
Freezepop's song "Swimming Pool" was featured in the episode "Liquid Heat" in the fifth season of The L Word
, originally aired March 2, 2008. In 2010, their song "Less Talk, More Rokk" was featured in The Fourth Panel, a web TV series from the webcomic Penny Arcade
.
On November 25, 2009, the band announced the addition of two new members: Robert John "Bananas" Foster and Christmas Disco Marie Sagan.
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
band from Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. They formed in 1999 with Liz Enthusiasm
Liz Enthusiasm
Liz Enthusiasm is the pseudonym of Justinne Gamache, the lead singer of the indie synthpop band Freezepop. She currently lives in Massachusetts....
, Sean T. Drinkwater
Sean T. Drinkwater
Sean T. Drinkwater is a musician living and working in Boston, Massachusetts. He is best known as one of the four members of the synthpop band Freezepop, in which he performs under the name The Other Sean T. Drinkwater, posing as a clone of the original Sean...
, and The Duke of Pannekoeken, an alias for composer Kasson Crooker
Kasson Crooker
Kasson Crooker is an American electronic musician, composer, and the artist behind Symbion Project, his solo moniker. He also works collaboratively in The Planets Won't Let You Sleep Tonight and his past bands are Freezepop, Splashdown, Larkspur, and Sirensong...
. As of December 2009, the current lineup includes Enthusiasm, Drinkwater, Robert John "Bananas" Foster and Christmas Disco-Marie Sagan. The band is named after the frozen snack
Ice pop
An ice pop, also referred to in the United States as a popsicle, and in the United Kingdom as an ice lolly, lolly ice or ice lollipop, is a frozen, water-based dessert. It is made by freezing flavored liquid around a stick. Often, the juice is colored artificially...
, and the members describe their music as "sweet and cold and fruity and plastic-y".
Several of the band's songs have appeared in video games, including the Harmonix
Harmonix Music Systems
Harmonix Music Systems is an American video game development company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the United States...
titles Frequency, Amplitude, Karaoke Revolution
Karaoke Revolution
Karaoke Revolution and its many sequels are video games for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Nintendo GameCube, Wii, Xbox, and Xbox 360, developed by Harmonix Music Systems and Blitz Games and published by Konami in its Bemani line of music games. The Original Concept for Karaoke Revolution was...
, Phase, the Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It is the first entry in the Guitar Hero series. Guitar Hero was released on November 8, 2005 in North America, April 7, 2006 in Europe and June 15, 2006 in...
series, and the Rock Band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
series. Their music has also been included in Downhill Domination
Downhill Domination
Downhill Domination is a video game based on a fictional racing event with fictional racers mixed with a few unlockable professional racers. The game was released for the PlayStation 2.-Gameplay:...
and Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix 3
Dance Dance Revolution ULTRAMIX 3
Dance Dance Revolution ULTRAMIX 3 is the tenth home version of Dance Dance Revolution released in the United States. It was released by Konami on November 15, 2005, for the Microsoft Xbox video game console. About 70 songs are available in total in this version...
. Freezepop songs continue to appear in certain Harmonix titles. Former member Kasson Crooker currently works as a senior producer at Harmonix.
The group is popular with college students in Boston and has become part of the US synthpop scene.
Background
Originally, their music was entirely composed on a small portable MIDI sequencerMusic sequencer
The music sequencer is a device or computer software to record, edit, play back the music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically :...
, a Yamaha QY70, which has often been mistaken for a Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
. On more recent albums, they have expanded their toolkit due to a lack of variety in the sounds the QY70 provided, but it still remains an important part of the composing process. The release of Future Future Future Perfect
Future Future Future Perfect
Future Future Future Perfect is the third full-length studio album by Freezepop. It was released on September 25, 2007 by Cordless Recordings.-History:...
only features the QY70 in a single song, that being "Pop Music Is Not a Crime".
In addition to Freezepop, Kasson, who had previously been in fellow Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
band Splashdown
Splashdown (band)
Splashdown, formed in Allston, Massachusetts, in 1996, was an American pop rock band. The group disbanded in 2001; their last show was at the release party for the debut CD of Freezepop on February 2 of that year. Splashdown gained a small but extremely loyal following in the Northeast United...
, still records as a solo artist Symbion Project. Drinkwater is also a member of the bands Lifestyle and Karacter, and worked with the band Polystar on their debut album. Enthusiasm appears on the song "Boom Box Chic" by Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based LeMans Electro.
In addition to dozens of remixes released over the years, Freezepop released a remix of their song "Shark Attack" done by chiptune
Chiptune
A chiptune, also known as chip music, is synthesized electronic music often produced with the sound chips of vintage computers and video game consoles, as well as with other methods such as emulation. In the early 1980s, personal computers became cheaper and more accessible than they had previously...
band 8 Bit Weapon
8 Bit Weapon
8 Bit Weapon is a chiptune music band created by Seth Sternberger. The instrument set of 8 Bit Weapon consists primarily of old 8-bit and 16-bit computers such as the Commodore VIC-20, Commodore 64, Commodore 128, Commodore Amiga 500, and the Apple II, as well as game consoles such as the Nintendo...
in October 2007. The remix was done with a Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
and a Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
computer. Robotkid
Robotkid
Robotkid is the alias of Josh Randall, an electronic dance musician, video artist, and video game developer from Cambridge, Massachusetts. Along with PK, he was part of the mid-1990s synthcore band Institute of Technology...
also used a similar approach in his Lameboy mix of "Science Genius Girl" that featured the Game Boy audio software Little Sound DJ.
A recurring theme in Freezepop's music is references to science, technology, and mathematics. As examples, the hi-phive mix of "Science Genius Girl" features Enthusiasm reciting the first thirty digits of Phi
Golden ratio
In mathematics and the arts, two quantities are in the golden ratio if the ratio of the sum of the quantities to the larger quantity is equal to the ratio of the larger quantity to the smaller one. The golden ratio is an irrational mathematical constant, approximately 1.61803398874989...
. Additionally, the "Robotron 2002" All Your Base Are Belong to Us remix by DJ Nebula pays homage to the Internet meme All your base are belong to us
All your base are belong to us
"All your base are belong to us" is a broken English phrase that became an Internet phenomenon or meme in 2000–2002...
.
Freezepop was arrested in Canada in November 2006 for trying to enter the country under false pretenses
False pretenses
Obtaining property by false pretenses is when a person obtains property by intentionally misrepresenting a past or existing fact.-Elements:The elements of false pretenses are: a false representation of a material past or existing fact...
. Harmonix pokes fun at them for this in the loading screens for their songs, in Rock Band and Rock Band 2
Rock Band 2
Rock Band 2 is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems. It is the sequel to Rock Band and is the second title in the series. The game allows up to four players to simulate the performance of popular songs by playing with controllers modeled after musical instruments...
.
On June 4, 2009, it was announced on Freezepop's official website that founding member the Duke of Pannekoeken (originally the Duke of Candied Apples, as well as the Duke of Belgian Waffles, all three pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
s of Crooker), would be leaving the band. Crooker stated, "My responsibilities at Harmonix making games continue to increase which takes away from my time and energy to compose and go out on the road to play shows." He also added that he had plans to focus on his side endeavor Symbion Project while also doing Freezepop remixes in the future. His last show as a member of the band was at the Penny Arcade Expo
Penny Arcade Expo
The Penny Arcade Expo is a semi-annual gamer festival held in Seattle and Boston. PAX was created by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the authors of the Penny Arcade webcomic, because they wanted to attend a show that gave equal attention to console gamers, computer gamers, and tabletop...
2009 in Seattle on September 5.
Along with bands such as The Aquabats
The Aquabats
The Aquabats are an American rock band formed in 1994 in Orange County, California. They have released five full-length studio albums and have toured internationally. They are best known for their mythology, in which they claim to be superheroes on a quest to save the world from evil through music...
, Bad Credit, and Slowdraw the Hungry Eskimo, their music is featured in the comedy series Mega64
Mega64
Mega64 is a low-budget series of comedy skits centered on video games.-Premise:In the not too distant future, a sinister scientist named Dr. Poque creates the most powerful video game console ever assembled...
, which also produced the music video for Freezepop's song "Brainpower
Brainpower (song)
"Brainpower" is a song by the synthpop band Freezepop. It is the sixth track on the non limited edition of the band's third album, Future Future Future Perfect, and seventh on the limited edition of the album...
".
Freezepop's song "Swimming Pool" was featured in the episode "Liquid Heat" in the fifth season of The L Word
The L Word
The L Word is an American co-production television drama series originally shown on Showtime portraying the lives of a group of lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and their friends, family and lovers in the trendy Greater Los Angeles, California city of West Hollywood...
, originally aired March 2, 2008. In 2010, their song "Less Talk, More Rokk" was featured in The Fourth Panel, a web TV series from the webcomic Penny Arcade
Penny Arcade (webcomic)
Penny Arcade is a webcomic focused on video games and video game culture, written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik. The comic debuted in 1998 on the website loonygames.com. Since then, Holkins and Krahulik have established their own site, which is typically updated with a new comic...
.
On November 25, 2009, the band announced the addition of two new members: Robert John "Bananas" Foster and Christmas Disco Marie Sagan.
Critical reception
Freezepop won Best New Band at the 2002 American Synthpop Awards and were semifinalists on WBCN's Rumble competition. In early 2006, Freezepop's "Stakeout" won in the Dance/Electronica – Song category at The 5th Annual Independent Music Awards.Studio albums
- Freezepop Forever (2000)
- Fancy Ultra•FreshFancy Ultra•FreshFancy Ultra•Fresh is the second full-length studio album by Freezepop. It was released in 2004 by The Archenemy Record Company.The enhanced CD features a set of audio visualizers playable with the album, a link to the official Freezepop website, the bonus song "#1 Song in Heaven" and three videos...
(2004) - Future Future Future PerfectFuture Future Future PerfectFuture Future Future Perfect is the third full-length studio album by Freezepop. It was released on September 25, 2007 by Cordless Recordings.-History:...
(2007) - Imaginary FriendsImaginary Friends (Freezepop album)Imaginary Friends is the fourth full-length studio album by Freezepop. It was released on December 7, 2010. However, select songs were released early in the form of free downloads or pre-order bonuses.-History:...
(2010)
EPs and remix albums
- The Orange EP (2000, EP, limited edition CD-R)
- The Purple EP (2000, EP, limited edition CD-R)
- Fashion Impression FunctionFashion Impression FunctionFashion Impression Function is a 2001 EP by Freezepop. Tracks 5, 7, 8 and 9 are remix versions of songs found on the band's previous album Freezepop Forever. The song "Manipulate" would later appear on the album Fancy Ultra•Fresh....
(2001, EP) - Hi-Five My RemixHi-Five My RemixHi-Five My Remix is a 2003 remix album featuring the music of Freezepop. Though hard copies of the album are currently out of print, the album is available through iTunes and other digital download services....
(2003, remix) - Mini Ultra•Fresh (2004, remix, promo only)
- Maxi Ultra•FreshMaxi Ultra•FreshMaxi Ultra•Fresh is a 2005 remix album featuring the music of Freezepop. Though hard copies of the album are currently out of print, the album is available through iTunes and other digital download services...
(2005, remix, out-of-print) - Form Activity MotionForm Activity MotionForm Activity Motion is a remix EP by Boston electronic band Freezepop. They released the EP online November 11, 2008; a physical CD was released January 27, 2009...
(2008 online, 2009 hard copy, remix)
Singles
- "Bike Thief" (2003, 12")
- "Dancy Ultra•Fresh" (2005, 12")
- "The Rokk SuiteThe Rokk Suite"The Rokk Suite" is a 2006 CD single by Freezepop featuring the songs "Less Talk More Rokk" and a remixed version of "Get Ready 2 Rokk". At the time of release, the songs had appeared on the soundtracks of Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero II...
" (2006, CD single)
Remixes by Freezepop
- "Duct Tape My Heart" (Remix), HyperbubbleHyperbubbleHyperbubble is an international visual and performing arts electro pop/synthpop duo from San Antonio, Texas formed by Jeff DeCuir and Jess Barnett DeCuir...
, 2005 - "Seven Boom Medley" (Multi-cover), "Boom BoomBoom Boom (Let's Go Back to My Room)"Boom Boom " is the debut single by American Hi-NRG singer and model Paul Lekakis.Originally released in 1987 on ZYX Records, then picked up by Polydor Records for a wider release, the song peaked at #43 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S. and at #60 on the UK Singles Chart in England...
" by Paul LekakisPaul LekakisPaul Lekakis is a Greek-American actor, model, filmmaker and club music / Hi-NRG singer, who was discovered for his musical and dancing skills at a nightclub while on assignment as a model in Italy.-Music career:...
and "Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!!" by The Vengaboys, 2001