Remember the days when computer music meant something raw, unrefined, and crunchy? The days of Rob Hubbard and Martin Galway, Jeroen Tel, Grey brothers. The pioneers.

I was expecting a great nod to the unsung heroes of the SID when I bought this album, but what I got was something more. It was 8 bit retro -- but also new music, with unique style, and (most important to me) with a sense of humor! This was not a copycat. This was an artist!

Michelle, please get a big stick and beat the hell out of the very masculine field of retro electronic music! Make a second album and make it in your own personal style!

My favorites on this album: Bridge (original), Coco Kitty, and Rockin Boogers. Do I have to say more? :)
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I got this CD about a day after shipping. 
The packaging itself is imaginative, and quite convincing. Thoroughly enjoyed this tidbit of thought. 
The album itself conjures up images of killing time in front of my favorite classics. Good, solid 8-bit inspired fun. I really like Tickled Pink and Coco Kitty. There are other good stand alone tracks on this CD, but the titles escape me... I have a tendency to just toss it in the player and let it go. My only beef? It could have been a longer album... but I'm probably not the only person to have this view. This CD is a treat, and if you like this sort of thing, then you won't be disappointed by picking htis one up.
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The start of this CD was for me slightly worrying, though with the second, third and then the fifth tracks I could not do anything than love it. Being an old C64-geek these tracks brought back a good many memories. My favourite tracks must be the third and fifth tracks on the CD, don't get me wrong, they're all wicked, but these two tracks has become special to me, in their own little special way.
The tunes are all good, the different influences can be heard on some of the tracks, the feeling of being about to meet the final Boss in some good old game is awakened again and again through the tunes on this CD.
A good buy, recommended for anyone who fancies himself a chip-tune fan.
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March 6, 2007 - Fans of old school videogame consoles—i.e. most who grew up in the 80s—have replaced baby boomers as the ruling generation. Now, the generation of people who have the most disposal income have grown up in a world where videogames were an integral part of entertainment from day one. Of course, this leads to a fondness for the simpler times. Nostalgia for the 8-bit era is strong, and this influence can be seen everywhere in popular culture, from T-shirts at Hot Topic to art to… music.

Enter micro music, an entire genre dedicated to lauding and replicating the sounds of youth. Artists who operate in this space craft melodies from old consoles and computer, weaving songs from the blips and thrums of decades-old machines to create new and vibrant music that is relevant to both eras.

The latest example in a string that includes such acts as FirestARTer, 8 Bit Weapon and the rap group 8-Bit is ComputeHer, a one-woman-show named Michelle who recently released her first full-length CD, titled Data Bass.
Hearing the album is a lot like listening to an undiscovered score of an old NES action/adventure game with eleven frantic levels. The pace rarely slows down, so strap in for a ride when you pop it in the disc tray.

After a short intro, the CD launches into its first frenetic melody, the bobbing "Coco Kitty," which sounds like the whimsical melody to a fast-paced platformer. Following that is the album's best track "Lost Control," which employs fuzzed-out explosion percussion and ramping themes to form a song that could easily be boss battle music for a Contra clone.

We've already done it twice, but the music on Data Bass is not so easily categorized into specific videogame themes. "Coco Kitty" and "Lost Control" definitely recall sounds and feelings from old school game tracks, but they are more complex and rich than the often one-dimensional, repeating loops of the era.
"Tickled Pink" employs an active bass line and manic keys to achieve an almost delirious jam, and "Rockin Boogers," another standout track, riffs on the Mario coin noise with a meandering melody that borders on experimental.

The album refuses to take a breath, rocking out with the hard-stomping "Smores," which chucks an arsenal of nostalgic one-hits and sirens into the mix to good effect. "Royal Flush" plays like a side-scrolling brawler on meth.

"Pho Sho" is the most unique track on the record, opting for an Asian-influenced sound palette to achieve a bendy, trippy walk through a garden of near-tranquility (imagine a tea service in the middle of an arcade). The record wraps with the driving theme "Bridge" and the comic "Bit Kicker," before unleashing an outro and three bonus tracks (one a "Bridge" remix by 8 Bit Weapon).
In all, Data Bass is a vital entry in the micro genre. Most of the tracks fly by at a breakneck pace until the end of the CD, so this is not a background kind of record. The frantic nature of the disc may put some people off, but nostalgic button mashers will be right at home here. 
8.0 Overall out of 10
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