The GeekDads

GeekDad HipTrax exists to help you discover nerdy music that you can actually share with your kids. As an added bonus, however, we also try to highlight quality music that is available for free. You know, recession and all that.

In this episode we spotlight selections from two brand new compilations, both of which are freebies from their respective sites:

"Robot Party" by Supercommuter

Hailing from Nerdcore Now Volume 1, consider this a sneak preview of what Wheelie Cyberman and company have in store for their next album. It's a delightful little ditty that equates android merriment with human suffering.

"Bulbasaur" by MC 117

Another fine selection from Nerdcore Now Volume 1, this one's a Flobots parody centered on everyone's favorite grass-/poison-type Pokémon. For some reason the phrase Razor Leaf instantly comes to mind.

"Shredder" by Danimal Cannon

Not to be outdone by their nerdcore brothers-in-arms, the VGM remix community released its own amazing free compilation album this week. Heroes vs. Villains features this cut and 19 more centered on the protagonists and antagonists of some of gamedom's most well respected properties.

The HipTrax theme song was created by Snake Eyes. He is the aural equivalent of both Bebop and Rocksteady. The mutants, not the genres.

Here at GeekDad HipTrax we pride ourselves on introducing you to new and exciting artists from across the geeky music meta-community, but we also like to continually reflect back on your old favorites. In this episode we highlight a trio of fine selections from some true musical heavy-hitters.

Enjoy the following delightful tracks:

"Lab Coat" by The Consortium of Genius

Louisiana's foremost musical mad scientists are back again with their newest full-length. A fun-filled stylistic romp from heavy metal to gospel and back again, Music for Supervillains features the COG at its most eclectic. A full review is forthcoming, but for the time being simply rest assured in the knowledge that it is awesome!

"Mako Reactor" by Mega Ran and Lost Perception

Though his name is synonymous with the Mega Ran project, rapper Random has now taken it upon himself to pen a hip-hop ode to another fan-favorite – Final Fantasy VII. Though the full version of his Black Materia album won't be available until the end of the month, eager fans can pick up an incomplete early release right now from Bandcamp.

"LOTROMG" by Uncle Monsterface

When I asked UMF's Dan and Marty to contribute a song to my fantasy role playing-themed 20-Sided Rhymes album they took it as an opportunity to wax poetic about the power and glory of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy. This staggering testament to Kiwi greatness can be found alongside 19 other (less family-friendly) selections at my blog Hipster, please!

Ken, Matt, Natania, and Jonathan chat about Egypt, FPS games for your 3 year-old, and how much we love Eureka. Enjoy!

Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks!

GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

Ken, Matt, Jonathan and special guest David Hewlett chat about the geeky gifts we did (and didn't) get for Christmas, and spread a little Tron love. Enjoy!

Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks!

GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

GeekDad HipTrax is back for 2011, and we're kicking things off by revisiting some of the best that last year had to offer. Our first two tracks are cuts from albums dropped late in the year – releases which you may have overlooked in the dreaded holiday rush – while the final track is a brand new joint from one of 2010's best new artists.

Relish the hotness:

"Retro" by Never Yet Contested

We spotlighted this single from Brooklyn rapper Never Yet Contested back in November, and since that time the his full Retro EP has become available. Download it for free at Bandcamp, and leave a comment to this post for the opportunity to win a free copy of the physical pressing compliments of the man himself!

"Spider" by Doctor Popular

HipTrax mainstay Doc Pop closed out 2010 with the release of his full-length Beeps and Smudges. This innovative bit-pop masterpiece was recorded using nothing but iPhone and iPad apps, and the results speak for themselves. Check out the video for this debut single, and pick up the full release over at Bandcamp .

"Nightcrawlin'" by Adam WarRock

Last year X-man Nightcrawler met with an unfortunate end during Marvel's "Second Coming" crossover, and I put out the plea via Twitter for a musical tribute. Adam WarRock, the man behind epic comic book concept album The War for Infinity, accepted the challenge and crafted this amazing song. This one is available exclusively through my blog Hipster, please!

The HipTrax theme song was created by Snake Eyes. His mutant power is the uncanny ability to craft tasty beats.

Congratulations to Ralph Gill, the winner of our 11th Day of Geekmas prize pack. With prizes from DiscoveryStore.com, Nyko, Sony, Insane Ian, Marc Gunn and an almost ridiculously expansive collection of BBC America swag, it is truly a hard act to follow. Or is it?

Today's winner will score remarkable prizes including our final container of Crazy Aaron's Putty and a pair of Mythbusters bobble heads from DiscoveryStore.com. He or she will also ring in the Geekmas season with a phenomenal GT660 gaming notebook from MSI Global boasting Dynaudio surround sound, two USB 3.0 ports and the Intel Core i7 Processor with NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285M discrete graphics cards! No – I'm not kidding.

In this year's final GeekDad HipTrax Stocking Stuffer Ken and I try to wrap our heads around how we managed to score such amazing prizes, and we fast-forward to year's end for Marc Gunn's stirring rendition of "Auld Lang Syne." We also unveil an additional Geekmas gift made available by our proud podcast sponsor MapHook – a 32GB iPod Touch, the winner of which will be drawn from all of the non-winning entries accumulated throughout the entire 12DoG series. Listen out for that secret code word, which will put you in the running for both random drawings. (Our hearing-impaired friends can find said code word in the podcast file metadata.) Enter that word and your personal information into the form below before 11:59 PM EST tonight to qualify.

Our "12 Days of Geekmas Theme" was created by John Anealio, and we truly couldn't have done this without his amazing contributions!

Giveaway rules:

Open to North American residents only.

One entry per physical address.

Must be 18 or older to enter.

Winners will be chosen by random from a given day's entries.

Winners will be notified via the email supplied at time of entry, and in the following day's giveaway post.

Prizes are supplied by 3rd parties, and GeekDad.com cannot be held liable for items damaged or lost in shipping.

All hail Josh Alkire, the winner of our 10th Day of Geekmas prize pack. Please enjoy your Crazy Putty, Hoth LEGO set and fantastic selection of Element cases content in the knowledge that you experienced Geekmas to the fullest.

The prize pack for this penultimate day of our highly specialized holiday season begins with your requisite container of Crazy Aaron's Putty. It is joined by a copy of PlayStation Move-enabled virtual pet title EyePet from our friends at Sony and another of those excellent Raven controllers compliments of Nyko. DiscoveryStore.com has provided another Discovery Chem-X 1000 Science Lab chemistry set, and once again Marc Gunn and Insane Ian have each come through with a pair of fine CDs. And to assure that today's prize offering goes down in geek history, BBC America Shop and Warner Bros. have provided a swag bag of epic proportions. It includes Sherlock season 1, the BBC Earth series Life plus the Life coffee table book, season 2 of monster cohabitation drama Being Human, series 5 of nerd favorite Doctor Who with 3 Who-tastic action figures and a Union Jack light switch cover. The best part? It could all be yours!

In this edition of the GeekDad HipTrax Stocking Stuffer we discuss these prizes at length, as well as our very own podcast sponsor MapHook. We also treat you to "Mr. Grint" by the Funny Music Project's hilarious Steve Goodie. Be sure to listen for the secret code word needed to enter our random drawing. (Our hearing-impaired friends can find said code word in the podcast file metadata.) Enter that word and your personal information into the form below before 11:59 PM EST tonight to qualify.

Our "12 Days of Geekmas Theme" was created by John Anealio. He's a mean one.

Giveaway rules:

Open to North American residents only.

One entry per physical address.

Must be 18 or older to enter.

Winners will be chosen by random from a given day's entries.

Winners will be notified via the email supplied at time of entry, and in the following day's giveaway post.

Prizes are supplied by 3rd parties, and GeekDad.com cannot be held liable for items damaged or lost in shipping.

Congrats to Sean Smith, winner of our 9th Day of Geekmas prize pack. That bad boy included a can of Crazy Aaron's Putty, a Raven controller from Nyko, a copy of Dance Dance Revolution from Konami and a 160GB PS3 and copy of ModNation Racers compliments of SCE San Diego Studio. What could you win today?

Why today we have another tin of Aaron's Putty and a Hoth play set from LEGO's famed Star Wars line. Also up for grabs is a phenomenal selection of cases from our friends at Element. Today's winner snags a Satin Nickel Joule iPad stand with a zippered carrying case, a Vapor 007 case from their Extreme Metals line, a Formula 3-part case and a lightweight and super stylish Ion case. No matter what your iOS device of choice, Element Case has you covered. Literally.

In today's GeekDad HipTrax Stocking Stuffer Ken and I enumerate the importance of practicing safe text. (I made an iPhone case-related funny!) We also spread the gospel of MapHook, our proud sponsor and the nerd world's preeminent location based social network. On the musical tip you'll hear Kirby Krackle's "Vigilante Christmas." It's our most violent holiday track yet! And don't forget to listen out for the secret code word – you'll need it to enter the random drawing. (Our hearing-impaired friends can find said code word in the podcast file metadata.) Enter that word and your personal information into the form below before 11:59 PM EST tonight to qualify.

Our "12 Days of Geekmas Theme" was created by John Anealio. When he comes down the chimney you better beware!

Giveaway rules:

Open to North American residents only.

One entry per physical address.

Must be 18 or older to enter.

Winners will be chosen by random from a given day's entries.

Winners will be notified via the email supplied at time of entry, and in the following day's giveaway post.

Prizes are supplied by 3rd parties, and GeekDad.com cannot be held liable for items damaged or lost in shipping.

Please join me in congratulating Chris Landon, the winner of our 8th Day of Geekmas giveaway. With a shiny new can of putty, a handsome Nyko Wand+ controller, two sexy t-shirts from 604 Republic and $200 in Groupon credit, surely the world is your oyster.

Friday is always a big day during 12DoG, and today's 9th Day of Geekmas is likely our biggest yet! For you see today's winner receives a fine can of Crazy Aaron's Putty, a brand new Raven controller from Nyko (the peripheral famed for bringing a touch of silky smooth Xbox 360-style control to the PS3), a copy of Dance Dance Revolution from our friends at Konami and, compliments of the extremely talented and equally generous team at SCE San Diego Studio, a 160GB PS3 and a copy of ModNation Racers. How, you may ask, did we manage to secure such fantabulous prizes? Two words: Faustian deal.

In this edition of the GeekDad HipTrax Stocking Stuffer Ken and I manage to find ourselves utterly overwhelmed by today's prize pack. We also reflect on our delightful sponsor MapHook, the location based social network that lets you and others contribute to shared digital memory sets. About, say, the new World of Warcraft expansion. You also get to hear Uncle Monsterface's take on Christmas classic "Jingle Bells" and the secret code word needed to enter our random drawing. (Our hearing-impaired friends can find said code word in the podcast file metadata.) Enter that word and your personal information into the form below before 11:59 PM EST tonight to qualify.

Our "12 Days of Geekmas Theme" was created by John Anealio. Y'know, I hear he actually owns a one-horse open sleigh.

Giveaway rules:

Open to North American residents only.

One entry per physical address.

Must be 18 or older to enter.

Winners will be chosen by random from a given day's entries.

Winners will be notified via the email supplied at time of entry, and in the following day's giveaway post.

Prizes are supplied by 3rd parties, and GeekDad.com cannot be held liable for items damaged or lost in shipping.

Congrats to Jason Powers, the proud winner of the 7th Day of Geekmas swag from Hexbugs, Nyko, DiscoveryStore.com and Putty World. I dare say today's prizes are equally eclectic. Not to mention equally awesome.

On our 8th Day of Geekmas both Crazy Aaron's and Nyko have returned with amazing prizes – another random can of putty and a Wand+ controller respectively. Today's winner also scores a pair of tees of his or her choice from epic Canadian clothier 604 Republic. But wait, there's more. In addition to this gaming-, putty- and t-shirt-related goodness you'll also nab a cool $200 worth of credit for that purveyor of wicked-fine deals Groupon. Who among us couldn't use this fine selection of assorted nerdery?

Check out today's GeekDad HipTrax Stocking Stuffer to learn more about the aforementioned prizes, and to hear us discuss the finer points of podcast sponsor MapHook. (Speaking of, be sure to peep this Maphook story; it is the harrowing tale of our pal David's NY Comic Con adventure!) You'll also be treated to a dose of Yuletide Wizard Rock from RiddleTM, "Draco's Christmas Wish," and the secret code word needed to enter our random drawing. (Our hearing-impaired friends can find said code word in the podcast file metadata.) Enter that word and your personal information into the form below before 11:59 PM EST tonight to qualify.

Our "12 Days of Geekmas Theme" was created by John Anealio. His new holiday EP Season's Geekings makes an ideal stocking stuffer.

Giveaway rules:

Open to North American residents only.

One entry per physical address.

Must be 18 or older to enter.

Winners will be chosen by random from a given day's entries.

Winners will be notified via the email supplied at time of entry, and in the following day's giveaway post.

Prizes are supplied by 3rd parties, and GeekDad.com cannot be held liable for items damaged or lost in shipping.