Last year’s MAGFest X found the debut of “Those Who Fight” to the event’s 2nd Stage, featuring a plethora of wild jamming with a rock opera twist. No strangers to the gaming music scene, the band features “Big Mat,” on keys and backing vocals, and Jon Berglind, vocals and narration , and several members previously familiar with the VGM scene such as Mike Willard, the vocalist and guitarist from “Armcannon,” Amanda Lepre, guitarist from “Descendants of Erdrick,” and both Jake Bryan on drums and Kyle Hoke on bass from “Year 200X.”
The state of the world is in chaos. Under the leadership of General Bizan, the Malacian Army continues its march throughout the northern continent giving only two options: convert to the Empire of Malacia or die. Those who stand up against this injustice, who speak and act out against these acts, those who are labeled as Resistance, Those Who Fight seek to bring an end to this tyranny.
The band itself centers its music around a Final Fantasy-esque story, with lyrics and performance that tell a tale that the band likens to “Final Fantasy 6.5”. This unique direction is something not often seen in most gaming-based bands, and certainly puts the group in a class the deviates from the norm of video game cover bands. However if you’re worried that Those Who Fight may diverge too far away from their roots, take comfort knowing that they have a wide repertoire of both well-known as well as often-overlooked tunes to whet the appetites of any Final Fantasy fan.
Those Who Fight will be gracing the MAGFest main concert stage on Saturday for a complete jamming experience, as well as featuring a merch booth in the merchant hall complete with a cosplay contest vying for a full set of band swag! If you can’t wait that long, though, you can head over to their Bandcamp page to check out their latest EP for a sneak peak of what you can expect to hear at MAGfest 11!
Tags: Final Fantasy, Know Your MAG, MAGFest 11, Rock Opera, Those Who Fight
