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In the year 200X, a robot named The Megas was created by Dr. Light to stop the mysterious evil genius Dr. Wily’s ambition to conquer the world. In the year 2008, a video game cover band named The Megas was created by Rev. Breeding and E to rearrange the music from the Mega Man game series, adding lyrics that would breathe new depth into the Blue Bomber, the 8 Robot Masters, and even their creators.
The Megas’s first album, Get Equipped, is a collection of ballads based on the songs from Mega Man 2. Each song endows one of the 8-bit sprites with very human characteristics and explores them. Bubble Man’s insecurity. Metal Man’s arrogance. Air Man’s isolation-fueled rage. In “Lamentations of a War Machine” Mega Man is conflicted after his victory, wrestling with the concept of destroying his fellow robots in the name of “everlasting peace.”
History Repeating is a larger, more ambitious project than Get Equipped. So large that it had to be split into two parts. In the first installment, History Repeating: Blue, The Megas continue to narrate the very human aspirations and motivations of the next generation of robotic bosses and even their human creators. Magnet Man has a forbidden attraction to Roll, Snake Man urges Mega Man to turn on Dr. Light and join the other side of the human/robot war, and Dr. Wily’s jealousy of Dr. Light drives him insane. Again. And in “(I Want to be The One) To Watch You Die,” the unofficial sequel to the band’s very first song “I Want to be the One”, Dr. Light has had enough of Wily’s betrayal and urges Mega Man to put a permanent end to his machinations.
I’m eagerly awaiting the second part of this project, History Repeating: Red. The Megas has released a small previous of their work in the form of Fly on a Dog. Again, Mega Man questions his place, but this time in the eyes of his “father” Dr. Light. Is he the scientist’s beloved son or just his favorite weapon?
Normally I prefer music that is available for free, but so far I’ve purchased all of The Megas albums. It’s worth it. But if you prefer, the band has all of the tracks from History Repeating: Blue and Fly on a Dog available on their YouTube page.
Once you start to feel the same urge to own it that I felt after listening to the freebies for a week, you can purchase it at their Band Camp page here.