Optimus Rhyme raps about fictional robots and performs at videogame conventions. No wonder the Seattle quartet was tagged a “nerdcore” group.
“There is this robotic mythology to it,” says Andy Hartpence, aka Wheelie Cyberman. “We’re all kids who grew up in the technology generation.”
They’ve worked in cubicles, too: Hartpence’s rhymes aren’t all fun and games, touching on the daily grind as they reference ’80s toys like the Transformers. Optimus Rhyme’s second full-length album—self-released and available via CD Baby and iTunes—is titled “School the Indie Rockers,” a nod to the rock groups the band often performs with. With increasing airplay on triple-A KEXP Seattle and an online fan base that sprung from the group’s involvement with game convention the Penny Arcade Expo, the members of Optimus Rhyme are nerds on the rise.