“Calculon sent Sonic-Funkatronic to us from a distant planet,” the old man told the young ones sitting at his feet. “It saw that earth had lost its funkiness, that we needed to be get our groove back.” The young ones nodded at the old man’s wisdom. It was said he had actually SEEN Sonic-Funkatronic once! “He was accompanied by his protector, the bass-wielding cyborg JC9000, and the keytar playing demon 2ndBASS, and together they brought us filthy, fuzzy riffs and funky, freaky rhythms. Oh, what glorious sounds they made, these space luchadores!” His eyes shone with excitement as he recalled the power of their noise. Then his visage turned stern as he looked back at the young ones. “But we weren’t ready for their message,” he rasped, “and that is why we wallow today in a world of shallow pop, because we didn’t listen when our saviors tried to show us the way.”
I’ve seen Revenge of Calculon live more often than any other band. How many times? Even I’m not sure. Probably somewhere between eight and ten, and every time it’s been in Reykjavik, which is odd when you consider the masked musical avengers (or are they de-constructors?) are from the UK and I live in the US. They play in Iceland frequently enough to have a cult following there, comprised of both locals and regular Airwaves attendees, and a live Revenge of Calculon show is ALWAYS a great time. This year’s show at Loft Hostel may have been the apex, a 45-minute dance party that left me sweaty and energized like few shows I’ve seen before.
Sonic-Funkatronic and his merry band of luchadores brought us a new release in 2025, the four-song 10″ EP Casino Fight! The title track appeared on their 2024 album Manipulator, while they other three songs are new to the Calculon Canon™, making this a must-have for all the mask-wearing heads (like yours truly).
Hit the tables / Take the punches / Cut your losses / Leave town, the female narrator of “Casino Fight!” intones. Not bad advice, sister. Casino Fight! is a musical seven-layer dip, it’s base the beats then working upwards with bouncing basslines, kinky keyboards, slippery synths, spacey samples, funky fuzztones, and topped with a final layer of cheeky chicanery. Or is it clever capering? Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, that’s right, I was deep in a funky trance, dancing around my living room as Casino Fight! filled my ears and forced my legs to move of their own volition, possessed by the fuzzy power.
Look, you owe it to yourself to check out Revenge of Calculon, it’s that simple. It’ll open up your mind and your ears, and may even teach you a dance move or three. Most of their catalog is on the various streaming services, though Casino Fight! isn’t on Spotify as of yet. But fear not, luchador, because you can stream it on the Revenge of Calculon Bandcamp page HERE, as well as pick up a copy of the 10″ vinyl. There are two color versions, black and purple, and with an edition size of 300 you better make sure to get yours so that you too can show your allegiance when our overlords from Calculon come to pay us a visit…