The Geekdads

Ken, Doug, and Matt chat about Ken's appearance on The Nerdist, the new Weird Al album, and why learning Latin is so important. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

Ken, Jonathan, and Matt chat about the 4th of July, the upcoming Nerdapalooza, and Comic-Con. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

It's HipTrax time again, my friends, and this edition is extra special. In addition to spotlighting a pair of new songs from two new HipTrax artists, we are also proud to present a GeekDad-themed track from one of our own! Peep the hotness: "Primary Function" by The Runaway Five The Runaway Five is a four-member Tucson, Arizona-based synth-rock outfit. You read that right; there are only four of them. And I'm calling shenanigans. "Soccer Practice" by Americans UK Though the bulk of Americans UK's latest EP Luxuria isn't exactly what one would term "kid-friendly," this jazz-infused funk number will likely prove itself irresistible to listeners of any age. "GeekDad" by John Anealio I have long considered John Anealio the official troubadour of GeekDad. This song simply cements that position. All official-like.

Ken, Dave, and Matt chat about the announcements from E3 and the Apple WWDC, plus Phineas & Ferb, and Ken's upcoming appearance on The Nerdist. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

Question: What's got four thumbs and loves chiptunes? Answer: The GeekDad HipTrax team! (Although we would've also accepted a hideously misshapen mutant with discriminating musical taste.) Get your bleep on with: "We Throw Shapes" by Superpowerless Oliver Hindle and Jaylyn Coffin, the same duo that brought you Tetrastar's amazing Songs We Didn't Write, are back with a shiny new Superpowerless single. "We Throw Shapes" is available for download now via iTunes, and the official video is presently blowing up the YouTubes. "Tickle Tickle!" by seal of quality The latest release from our friends at netlabel Pterodactyl Squad is the epic Fate Patterns by French chiptuner seal of quality. Boasting eleven tracks of crisp Game Boys, sharp guitars and delightful vocoder, it's available as a free download and as a limited edition physical pressing. "Reformat the Planet" by Bit Shifter While this song shares its name with the phenomenal chip culture/Blip Festival documentary, its source EP recently inspired a trib

Ken and Matt recap Maker Faire 2011, talk about PotC:OST and X-Men, and get generally silly about a bunch of stuff. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

This edition of Hiptrax is firmly dedicated to cover songs. Of course since this is GeekDad only the strangest and most dorktastic covers will do! Explore your rock 'n' roll roots with: "Back in Your Life" as covered by Marc with a C Though not a geeky artist in the traditional sense, Jonathan Richman blazed a proto-punk trail with his band The Modern Lovers. His music has inspired acts as diverse as punk pioneers the Sex Pistols and lo-fi troubadour Marc with a C thanks to his whimsical, childlike approach to lyricism and his refusal to operate within the bounds of the aggressive musical conventions of the age. "I Never Go to Work" as covered by Nuclear Bubble Wrap With a fine blend of off-kilter originals and irreverent parodies, Nuclear Bubble Wrap's Exploding Head Syndrome is a pitch-perfect example of funny music at its finest. Also included in that 2010 release is this slightly amended and thoroughly enjoyable They Might Be Giants cover. "Melanie" as covered by Shael Riley and the Double Ice Backf

Ken, Matt, Curtis, and Jonathan chat about the sale of Skype to Microsoft, Thor, and Maker Faire 2011. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

In this edition of GeekDad HipTrax we celebrate Free Comic Book Day. It's like a High Holy Day for geeks where our only obligation is to hit up our favorite comics retailers. Is that really too much to ask? Those looking to get the skinny on local FCBD events are encouraged to check out these handy resources from our sponsor MapHook. Individual hooks have been put in place for the American northeast, southeast, west coast and the broad, doughy center of our great nation. Check 'em out now for lists of events and participating vendors, and use the free MapHook app to share photo memories of this year's festivities with your fellow comic lovers. Enjoy the comic book camaraderie of: "Uncanny (feat. MC Lars)" by Beefy Admittedly this track from Beefy's 2010 release With Sprinkles concerns X-Men: The Animated Series, which took its fair share of liberties with proper comic book canon. Still, it's an amazingly fun little song that spotlights a great cartoon with an even better theme song. "Ring Capacity" by Ki

Ken, Matt, Natania, Michael, and Jonathan chat about the Apple tracking controversy, Sony's PSN personal data breach, and the loss of Elisabeth Sladen. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

This edition of GeekDad HipTrax focuses on quirky electronica, a handful of charming musical jewels that you may have overlooked. Like any good parents, Ken and I are here to encourage you to try out these interesting new flavors of geektastic tunage. As the saying goes, you might like it! Open wide for: "Dandyceratops" by Dot.AY Australian chip artist Dot.AY always planned on being a paleontologist, but instead he grew up to make chiptunes. It's a loss for the scientific community, of course, but a big gain for music lovers everywhere. His latest release Ceratopian Society celebrates his twin loves, and is available now via Bandcamp. "Points" by Comptroller Scotland's Comptroller just released an amazing new EP entitled Baddies through Liverpool-based netlabel CalmDownKidder. It is their 50th release, and you can score it from their site absolutely free. "Superimposed" by The Efts Husband and wife team The Efts have hand-picked eight of their own tunes for the This Music is Probably Too Geeky for You co

Ken, Matt and Jonathan chat about the anniversary of the first man in space, the first Space Shuttle mission, and how effective it is to be a pedant. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

We here at GeekDad HipTrax seem to be slightly preoccupied with Terminator-style dystopias in which mankind's beloved technology has turned against him. This is odd seeing as we are actually a family-friendly music podcast, but, as the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don’t' fix it! So put on a happy face with these uplifting ditties: "Zero Day" by MC Frontalot With the aid of noted hackers computer enthusiasts YTCracker and int eighty, MC Frontalot paints a bleak picture of a not-so-distant future in which all of our security exploits have been... properly exploited. A music video for this title track from Front's latest album was recently released. "Doomlaser" by Nathan Meunier The first song from video game journalist/bit-popper Nathan Meunier's Robots. Lasers. Awesome. is a dense, urgent affair. Building on the LSDJ-meets-crunchy-guitar style of his debut The Beacon, the album boasts a more polished sound that is as awesome as advertised. "Brain Damage" as covered by echosignal Closing out this edit

Ken, Matt, John, and Russ chat about the "Hop" press junket and how to cook a perfect steak in a cooler. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum, Jonathan Liu and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

After a pleasant sojourn into the magical realm of mc chris (and a brief vacation), GeekDad HipTrax is back to doing what it does best – getting all up in your ear hole with a trio of fine new geeky songs. While we were in there I noticed some waxy buildup. I’m just sayin’. Today’s episode highlights new hotness such as: "Angry Robot" by John Anealio John Anealio knows science fiction. And what is more sci-fi than robots? Nothin’ – that’s what! Snag this fine selection and covers of the theme from Transformers and Styx’s "Mr. Roboto" on his free Angry Robot EP. "Hope to See You Again Soon" by ProtoDome & Level 99 The latest OverClocked ReMix album pays tribute to arguably the most important franchise in handheld gaming. Pokémon - The Missingno Tracks is a free-to-download collection of Poké-centric musical goodness, which means you have that much more money to put toward your much-need purchase of Pokémon Blackor White. "Serenity Lost" by Sci-Fried Florida’s Sci-Fried continue to be a jewel in the

Ken, Matt, John, Michael and Russ chat about PAC East, Japan, and the 4-year anniversary of the blog. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

Ken, Matt, and Jonathan chat about events in the Middle East, Geek Like, the Anti-Vaxers dilemma, and more. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

Ken, Matt, Mike, Natania and Chuck chat about PAX East, Maker Faire, D&D and more. Enjoy! Special thanks to our sponsor Maphook, the location-based social network for geeks! GeekDad.com is the parenting blog at Wired.com, edited by Ken Denmead, Matt Blum and Chris Anderson. It is a community of like-minded geeky parents writing about our experiences raising our kids in the digital age, and about our obsessions with technology, family-friendly projects, and pop-culture. The GeekDads podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of anything and everything that impacts us as geeks and parents.

GeekDad HipTrax exists to help you discover nerdy music that you can actually share with your kids. As an added bonus, however, we also try to highlight quality music that is available for free. You know, recession and all that. In this episode we spotlight selections from two brand new compilations, both of which are freebies from their respective sites: "Robot Party" by Supercommuter Hailing from Nerdcore Now Volume 1, consider this a sneak preview of what Wheelie Cyberman and company have in store for their next album. It's a delightful little ditty that equates android merriment with human suffering. "Bulbasaur" by MC 117 Another fine selection from Nerdcore Now Volume 1, this one's a Flobots parody centered on everyone's favorite grass-/poison-type Pokémon. For some reason the phrase Razor Leaf instantly comes to mind. "Shredder" by Danimal Cannon Not to be outdone by their nerdcore brothers-in-arms, the VGM remix community released its own amazing free compilation album this week. Heroes vs. Vill

HipTrax isn't exactly a show about kids' music. Generally it's a podcast more firmly focused on music that parents can enjoy with or in the company of their brood – geeky grown-up music that eschews the worst of language or explicit content. But in this episode we pause to focus on the upcoming release of a very notable children's album, mc chris's Marshmellow Playground. We spend a good bit of time talking to mc about the project and its genesis, and we even play the album's teaser single: "Halloween" by mc chris A song about candy, cavities and dental hygiene, "Halloween" isn't your typical mc chris track. Nor is it your typical piece of kindie rock. Leveraging his own unique brand of hip-hop in a kid-friendly package, Mashmellow Playground promises to be an interesting new addition to mc chris's musical library, and will likely introduce a new generation of fans to the Adult Swim funnyman.