Rock Band Turns 5 Years Old! Stories From The Community

[SideshowN]

Oh those days of rubber banding a sock on the original RB1 drum pads to get them to not drop notes to now being able to use my Alesis DM10 Pro kit to play in the game. Good times.

[ZoiloCruz]

Well I remember my brother bought the band kit for the PS2 and I was getting a bit jealous because I've wanted to try the game out, but knowing my brother is an arrogant **** he would never share -_- While he was unboxing the (like an idiot -_-) he's girlfriend told me that I could play with them (thank god she did ) I was a huge LP fan :P and knew a few songs from different artists. The first song we've ended playing was Radiohead's "Creep" to this day it remains as my favorite song in the game. I was doing pretty good on easy 'Til I've got on drums where it ended confusing me for a bit because of the pedal. 'Til I figure out that the bass pedal is represented by yellow line I started hitting notes correctly 'Til my brother criticized how I was playing (consider the fact he failed every time he played them -_-) Then I switched to vocals (which was the best part ) Don't if I did good or not, but my brother would funny of me every time I sang the lyrics, "I'm a creep/ I'm weirdo" -_- Well I did enjoy the game a lot It open the door to not only rhythm games, but to music Soon my taste in music got bigger and bigger. Also it made me realize that I want to make music in my life, though many just frown upon the idea, I still embrace being a musician So yeah there goes my story

[FairwoodStudios]

Oh those days of rubber banding a sock on the original RB1 drum pads to get them to not drop notes

Oh man, I remember that. I think one of my socks is still in the trunk of my car.

[ZoiloCruz]

I had some more to write in this, but I kinda need a break... I'll see if i add something later. Let me just say this though:

This community is the closest thing to a (pretty dysfunctional ) family that I have. And i hope this place stays forever, I know it will in my heart.


<3 Sarah

Some story that was.... You sure are brave to share something like that. Although sometimes I feel like I couldn't get along with you (or anyone else on the forum) I'll admit, I just got issues getting a long with people :/ Being too nice or being a little mean to be sort of funny IDK :/ I'm at the point where depressing thoughts just keep getting deeper and deeper Feelings of being useless always come time mind I guess I'm not too happy with myself lately :/ But the thing that always cheer me up is making music Just the thought being able to listen to music it gives me some sort of freedom in my life Though my experience hasn't been pleasant (in the forums) :/ I do like voicing my opinions once in a while and sure I can be annoying, but really I'm like most of ya just trying to fit in this tragic world

[jibjqrkl]

eh, life sucks

what i do is simply have fun.
if something doesn't bring you joy, (or eventually leads to feeling good) then don't do it.

[horsepastriesa]

Ooh! Here's a story.

So the first time my girlfriend ever came to my place was this Halloween. My dad thought she was a trick-or-treater and shrugged her off, but then she said who she was. I got up to the door, and she was there in a pretty skimpy Silk Spectre costume with a friend of hers in a Wonder Woman costume. It was a very confusing and awkward situation, so I just said "wanna play Rock Band?" It was an odd question, but we had an awesome time. We did awesome 3 part harms on We Are Young and she and her friend did their amazingly terrible rendition of Tubthumping (they didn't know the song). And it's safe to say it was possibly the best Halloween of my life.

[jack060577]

First of all, I really hope everybody at Harmonix could read this. I am a huge fan of you, guys, and this message should turn up to be long to read, but I hope you enjoy the stories and, most of all, my passion for your games.

My story with Harmonix began a long time ago, back on PS2, with Frequency. My passion for music drove me to play it for hours. Than the same happened with Amplitude. But I was still "missing" something, as my favorite genre, rock, was not entirely covered by these titles.

Then I got to know about Guitar Hero. I got simply addicted to the game, to the extent I have imported a guitar directly from Redoctane! (Guys, consider how difficult it was - I am from Brazil, and back in 2005 things were way more difficult).

Then I played GH2, GH3 and couldn't believe when I saw the first teaser from Rock Band - you know, when you got into the website and the only thing we could see was an add - "Rock Band Wanted" or something like that. I started thinking all my wildest dreams were coming true....but I was aware it would take a long time before I could get my hands on a Rock Band kit...

And this was my first luck - or should I call it "destiny"? - when my boss told me I should travel to US for a training in March, 2008 – I work for an American company here in São Paulo. It would be my chance to buy me one Rock Band kit! So I bought it, and I'm pretty sure I was one of the first Brazilian guys to have it. I even wrote a review for a Brazilian site at the time. This is the link of the review (sorry, it’s in Portuguese): http://jovemnerd.ig.com.br/colunas/p...eview-brazuca/

Therefore, I have been playing since then, and bought all the other games (RB2, AC/DC, Track Packs, Lego, Beatles, Green Day and Blitz), and nowadays I have more than 1000 songs. I even have asked you to try to set up a "Rock Band Bar Nights" here in Brazil in 2009, but the program was valid only in US.

More recently I had my second luck, when you released RB3 in the end of 2010 and I went for the second time to US in May 2011 - and again, I could buy RB3, the keyboard, a new drumset with cymbals and even a Squier to play Pro Guitar!

And now my last "RB achievement" was my Rock Band site. In December 2011 I went to US for the third time - thanks to my job again! - and could buy a video recorder and started making videos from my RB3 gameplay sessions. Some of my friends liked it and then I had the idea of creating a website to upload the videos. It's called Rock Band Song a Day, as I upload a song every day, always playing a different instrument. The site came to life on March 2012. My intention with it is simply for the fun I have making the videos. The site does not have any kind of advertisements, and no intention to earn money whatsoever. It is purely a way to express how fun it is for me to play this awesome game, and even a way to thank you for all the hard work you have since 2007 to deliver the best musical gaming experience ever! The site address is www.rockbandsongaday.com

For the forum friends who would like to participate on the website, simply send me your RB video links. Every Sunday I post a video from the site readers.

And that’s it. Sorry about writing so much (I warned you!) and once more, thanks for these incredible five years, from a Brazilian guy who simply love your game and is passionate about your work.

Long live Rock Band!

Regards,

Jack Bezerra
www.rockbandsongaday.com
jack@rockbandsongaday.com

[DrowGamer77]

How time flies, right friends?

As we celebrate the 5 year anniversary of RB, I got to thinking about how much has changed over that time - not just from RB1 to RB3, but in my life.

Then I started thinking about the fellow forum goers - the good, the bad and the ugly. We've made friends, we've lost friends, cranked some tunes and had many hours of fun in front of the warming glow of the TV coupled with the plastic clicks of guitars and smacks of the drum sticks.

MY RB Moments:

I didn't play RB until Rock Band 2 was released - even then it was another 2 months before I timidly picked up the sticks... since then, it's been the only "instrument" I play. My fondest memories all involve jammin' with my friends - Spidey, Bachi, Lawdog, Doc and a few others. Usually when we're all tuned up and find that groove for a couple songs and we all "get it"

Life moments:

Got engaged
Got married
Went to Disneylad for the first time (a little late to the game)
Became a father
Moved away from my home state and entire network of friends and family for the first time in my life
New Job/Career

All in I've been exposed to many cool people, a handful of turds, and shared many laughs.

Thanks,

[Dadasaurus Rex]

Bought RB1 on a whim because my wife and I had played GH2 at a friend's house. She said "This is really fun, I wish there was a full band game."
Walking through Target one day to get some wrapping for her Anniversary present I spied this big old blue, white and black box on one of the end caps. I read the splashes and decided to buy it as an auxillary present. We played for several hours that day (the kids were gone) then had a reservation for our Anniversary dinner to go to. We went to Dinner and the plan was to go out dancing afterward. On the way home I was stuffed to the gills and just wanted to go home, but did not dare not say it and ruin our Anniversary.
As if a gift from the Gods was handed down to me, My wife said to me about half way to the dance joint..."Hun, I don't want to bum you out, but I am just to full to go dancing. I'd rather just go home and play that new Rock Band game." Hallelujah! Not only did we not go dancing, we played RB til 4 in the morning. The rest is history.
Best Anniversary Ever!

[VintageRoller]

Wow 5 years. cant believe its been that long. Heck I've been playing with my plastic guitar for that long is beyond the comprehension of my friends and family. But I've stuck with Harmonix for the longest time. Ever since Frequency. Guitar Hero took over my life. I didn't play anything else. I would go to best buy sometimes just to showboat lol, drawing in a crowd was a pure confidence booster. Heck I even helped sell copies of the games by boasting the genius behind it. When Rock Band came out it was just pure heaven. To this day I believe harmonix should get a nobel peace prize since the series has brought so many people together to play music. Brilliant! And the fact that even till this day Harmonix keeps bringing out new songs just amazes me. They've shown that its all about the artform, the music, the people.

I upgraded to the pro guitar since RB3 has come out and to be honest i felt the fatigue from all those years playing the classic setup that it took me a full year to get back into it again. Heres the kicker is that my motivation has increased mainly due to the fact that my son is showing intrest in music. He's only 10 months and when I play he's there with me bouncing to the beat and clapping his hands. I new generation of rocker is born lol.

I must conclude with this last satement that this game and this company have done so much for so many people that it amazes me to think about it. The absolute commitment from this community and Harmonix towards this game should not go unnoticed. I mean 5 years of consistent content is more than any other company have done for their games. I just downloaded a dozen songs just this weekend and their pro versions so I can learn these songs on guitar. Harmonix I tip my hat and raise a glass. Heres to another 5 years and many more.