TUESDAY, SEPT. 4:

If you don’t already know, the Advantage is a four-piece Sacramento-based band of hairy dudes that play metal-sounding themes to Nintendo games. They generally play with an electric setup, but this summer they’re doing a short tour of California using two acoustic guitars, an acoustic bass and drums. Last week at the Echo, they played to a modest mix of Nintendo nerds and metalheads, all of whom were less than demonstrative–though in their own way, they were engaged with the performance. Guitarists Ben Milner and Robby Moncreiff locked in tight on rapid riffs, which sounded very jazz-like on acoustic guitars—appropriate actually, because early Nintendo composer Koji Kondo cites jazz influence in his work. Spencer Seim, though playing primarily with dowels instead of drumsticks, still managed to sound like a monster. The Advantage dudes inserted wry comedic bits into their set, like adding famous grunge intros to Nintendo songs. The riff from “Today” by the Smashing Pumpkins preceded the theme to Mega Man, and the chords to “Smells Like Teen Spirit” preceded Super Mario Bros. The most fascinating aspects of the show were the transformation of purely digital music into raw acoustics, and the transformation of background music into foreground music. It is these ideas that make the Advantage better than any old cover band—their strength lies in their ability to create something new. (LN)