Meet Unicorn Hole | Nintendocore Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Unicorn Hole and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Unicorn, why did you pursue a creative career?
Boredom has been a foreign concept to me for as long as I can remember. When I had free time as a kid, I was drawing pictures, writing stories, and planning projects. I’ve always been able to entertain myself. I love to consume media- music, video games, comics- and when I do there’s always a voice in my head saying “you could make something like this.”

I love the process of planning a new project: making lists of ideas, collaborating with others, and figuring out how to make an idea come to life. I also love the other side of the creative process- performing or presenting, and receiving feedback on my work. Once I got to the age where I could hop on stages, and post my creations online, it was a no brainer to do so. I don’t think I’ll ever not feel weird calling myself an artist, but here goes- being an artist is absolutely just a part of me. It always has been and always will be. (Prolly gonna get kicked out of some retirement home for practicing guttural vocals and scaring everyone.)

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
A bolt of lightning smashes through your roof and into your attic, instantly melting your retro gaming stuff and your metal CD collection into a single, twisted aberration. If you dare press the smoldering power button, the sounds of Unicorn Hole will erupt from the charred speakers!

Unicorn Hole has been releasing heavy music with retro video game flair since the first batch of tracks dropped on MySpace in 2007. Metal bands typically take themselves very seriously. There’s a time and place for that, but I think it’s fine to enjoy the energy and punch of metal without being all “I despise this” or “eviscerate that.” I love retro video games, but I also tend to enjoy things more when they have a bit of an edge to them. So from somewhere in all that mess the idea manifested to create a metal band with lyrics about video games, and with retro bleeps and bloops to boot. I’m not the first “Nintendocore” band, but I am .. the one talking right now I guess.

Uhole is set apart from (the handful of) similar artists by the quantity and diversity of my works. I’ve released well over 200 songs, exploring a variety of genres, tones, guests, and other variables along the way. I have the NCU, which is a massive fantasy story told across many albums (even some by other bands I’ve worked with), that features animated music videos, and even a dedicated wiki. I have informative videos on my YouTube about Nintendocore as a genre. I’ve done all kinds of things, and some of my wildest ideas are still being worked on. Sixteen years in I feel like I’m only getting started.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Ah, this is a fun question! We would definitely hit up the local retro video game stores like Old School Player and Software Seconds, and other places with lots of physical media like Scratch n Spin. I adore these shops specifically, but also any locally-owned vintage media shops. I seek them out any time I travel, so if you come to visit me you’re gonna see my local faves.

For food we’d hit up Menkoi to get some authentic ramen and onigiri. For breakfast we’d go to Bubba’s Biscuit (and then take a big nap immediately after). Some other nearby restaurants I love are Cafe Strudel (those duck fat fries tho), and Pizza Kovachi. If I’m being honest, we’d also go to Taco Bell a few times.

If we want Mexican or Chinese, though, we have to drive to my hometown of Pelion for Don Pepe or New Dragon- both are absolutely worth the drive. While we’re in Pelion, we’ll buy some delicious boiled peanuts from some crusty dude’s pickup truck on the side of the road. (This must read like a joke, but I’m dead serious.) Also there’s Mobile Food Monday at Curiosity Coffee Bar, if we wanna keep the banger-food-from-a-vehicle thing going.

If something good is playing we’ll drive out to The Big Mo- a nearby drive-in theater. Then hopefully we can catch an awesome show at New Brookland Tavern (RIP to the State Street location that I’ve frequented since high school) or Art Bar. For some quiet time, we’ll go to Peach Tree Rock (RIP again, to the titular rock), or the much less popular Shealy’s Pond. Finally, there may or may not be a certain abandoned school we could go explore- depends on who’s asking.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Unicorn Hole was a solo project for sixteen years, but I’ve had a ton of help along the way. Tyler (Starcutter) gave Uhole a huge boost when he crafted a production style for me in 2015 that I’ve used and modified ever since. Bryant (Bryadow) has provided visual flair for Uhole for years now- from smaller things like audio visualizer, up to animated music videos with original art by Alicaido. Denny (Inversive Audio) has helped with various audio production things, and will be stepping further into that role soon. I’ve collaborated with dozens of artists from a few different groups/scenes online, including Nintendocore Lives, Big Money Cybergrind, Bit Gen, and others.

Most recently, Uhole has transitioned into a performing four-piece band. I have to extend a massive thanks to my realest homies- Dustin, Mitch, and PJ for taking up guitar, synth, and drums (respectively) for Uhole live. The band would also struggle without my wonderful wife Jerilyn, who enthusiastically runs our merch table, and KJ and Lindsay, who help with lots of other gig-related things. There are countless other people who have helped me out along the way, in big and small measures. I’m super grateful for all of it, and always strive to support my friends in their own creative endeavors however I can.

But if we’re being honest here, the main thing that’s pushed me to go further and rise higher over the years is that fabled double-barrel corndog. If you know, you know.

Website: uholeband.com

Instagram: instagram.com/uholeband/

Facebook: facebook.com/unicornhole/

Youtube: youtube.com/unicornhole64

Image Credits
The shot with the watermark that says as much was taken by Steven Rickman, The NCU album art was drawn by Pat Garland