Psychostick, Lords of the Trident (EP release)

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Mar Morannon

Lords of the Trident on stage at the 2024 Mad With Power fest.

Lords of the Trident

Yeah, we know Chicago’s comedy metal band Psychostick technically is the headliner. Their songs like the rousing “Numbers (I Can Only Count to Four)” and the irritatingly catchy “Beer” have racked up millions of streams. But get to the club on time to see Madison’s metal maestros Lords of the Trident celebrate the release of V.G.E.P., which the band will play in its entirety. Four of the tracks were inspired by members’ favorite video games, while the fifth is a magnificent metal cover of Steve Winwood’s “Valerie.” Why? Because that pop song was often playing at the Aladdin’s Castle mall arcade where lead singer and band mastermind Ty Christian spent his formative years.

from Lords of Trident newsletter:

Our new EP - the V.G.E.P. - is inspired by some of our favorite video games of all time.  You may rightfully wonder how a cover of "Valerie" by Steve Winwood fits into that category. And the truth is - it doesn't. At least...not directly.

When I was a kid, the local mall arcade - "Aladdin's Castle" - was a short bike ride from my house, so I basically grew up there. I remember parking my bike, entering the mall out of the hot summer air, and listening to the canned mall music being played over the tiny, ceiling-mounted speakers as I walked towards the arcade. 

More often than not, "Valerie" by Steve Winwood would be playing as I reached the doors of Aladdin's Castle, where the busy noises of the arcade machines would overtake the sound of Mr. Winwood belting out the name of his lost lover. That's why, for whatever reason, I associate "Valerie" with the childhood thrill of exchanging my quarters for tokens and challenging the latest video game. We wanted to pay homage to the original hand-painted video by attempting to recreate the look and feel (and aspect ratio!) of Steve Winwood's legendary music video. How'd we do? Let us know in the comments of the video!