Neo Geo!

Keith Apicary, the nerdy, retro game-loving character portrayed by comedian Nathan Barnatt, is coming to my area in September! I’m making plans to be there. From what I’m reading, Game Underground in Framingham, MA sounds like a great place for used games and systems and for playing consoles and arcade games. But I wonder what kind of room they’ll have to host someone as popular as Keith.

A couple nights ago, I spent a couple hours at Pinball Wizard Arcade in Pelham, NH to escape the heat. 4 new pinball machines were awaiting my attention. First and foremost, the latest new production game, Tron: Legacy. This is not the Limited Edition model. I was a little underwhelmed, but when I achieved the Light Cycle multiball, my opinion changed. It was frantic and fun.

Here’s a lovingly restored Cactus Jack’s from 1991:

Hook (1992) surprised me and turned out to be a lot of fun. The other machine I played years ago must not have been working so perfectly or looking so good.

Finally, a favorite among modern era pinball fans, Medieval Madness. This machine was set to 4 tokens.

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I bought one of the arcade’s new T-shirts and owner Sarah surprised me with a quick tour of the back room where she said she has about 100 games in various states of repair.

If you haven’t checkout out Pinball Wizard Arcade, do yourself a favor and give it a shot.

My wife and I are big fans of NBC’s A cappella singing competition show, The Sing-Off. When I saw that season 2 winners Committed had booked a show in our area, even though I was broke, I bought tickets and put them on my credit card. Luckily the tickets were only $20 each after Ticketmaster’s infamous service charges.

Last night we dropped our son off with my parents’ and had a rare night out alone. We arrived at the Showcase Live club (in the Patriot Place complex) 2 hours early and were the second couple in line. When the doors opened at 6pm, we shared the front middle table with another couple who turned out to be nice people and Seventh Day Adventists (as Committed are).

The guys in Committed were humble, warm, and fun. Vocally, they were as tight as you remember from the best parts of their performances from the TV show–barely a bad note to be heard from any of the six of them all night. They performed their original Christian songs as well as covers from Take 6, Boyz II Men, Usher, and Leonard Skynard.

After the show, they were available at their merchandise table to greet fans and sign photos. T-shirts were also on sale.

If you’re an A cappella music fan, I hope you had a chance to see Committed. I think their tour wraps up tonight in New York.

In related news, The Sing-Off season 1 winners NOTA are playing in Boston with the Dear Abbys at Boston University July 17. It should be great!

Here are some photos that Misha and I snapped on our phones last night: