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Sing, Choir of Old-School PCs

Vintage computers deliver a new take on a classic carol.

Christmas carols don't always come in the form of do-gooders going doorstep to doorstep in Dickensian fashion. James Houston, a Glawgow-based moving image maker and experimental artist, proves that holiday jingles can provide platforms for tech-based experiments in creativity with his piece "Season's Greetings From The Glasgow School of Art."

Using vintage Mac computuers, a Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum +1 and a SEGA Mega Drive, he composed a unique interpretation of "Carol of the Bells," including lyrics like "Hail the machines/sweet old machines/blow off the dust/wipe off the rust." The best quip, though, might be "Beep, beep, beep/like and retweet."

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Screencaps via 

Houston told the Glasgow School of Arts, "I discovered that a few [machines] had the capability for speech synthesis so the obvious next step was to figure out how to assemble a choir." We doubt he'll be bringing this group of "musicians" door to door this Christmas, though.

This isn't the artist's first project that turned computers into a singing ensemble. In 2008, he remixed Radiohead's "Nude" in a similar manner. 

All the lyrics to his Christmas carol can be found below. Season's e-greetings, folks.

HAIL THE MACHINES
SWEET OLD MACHINES
BLOW OFF THE DUST
WIPE OFF THE RUST

CHRISTMAS HAS COME
JOY IS FORETOLD
FOR THOSE OF US
YOU NEVER SOLD

STILL WE ARE HERE
STILL FULL OF CHEER
JUST PLUG US IN
IT WILL BEGIN

FRIENDS US AND YOU
FRIENDS WE ARE TRUE
WE HAVE NOTHING
BETTER TO DO

BLEEP BLOOP BEEP BONG
HEAR OUR SWEET SONG
IF NONE OF OUR
CODING IS WRONG

BY THE WAY WE REMIND YOU THAT YOU COULD
PLAY WITH US EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR

JUST IGNORE THAT OUR CASING IS ALL MUCKY
WE'LL STILL LOAD FOR YOU IF WE ARE LUCKY

GIVE US A THOUGHT
BLOW IN THE SLOT
TIGHTEN THE SCREW
WE WILL COME THROUGH

YOUR DREAMS AND PLANS
YOUR TINY HANDS
FOCUSED AND PRIMED
SINCE YOU WERE NINE

NOW ON THIS DAY
YOU CAN REPLAY
MISSIONS OF WHEN
YOU'RE YOUNG AGAIN

FESTIVITIES
AROUND THE TREE
NEW GIFTS EMBRACED
WE'VE BEEN REPLACED

PHONE IN YOUR HAND
BEST IN THE LAND
CAN’T TAKE YOU BACK
TO WONDERLAND

BUT WE CAN BRING
BACK EVERYTHING
JUST REMINISCE
DIGITAL BLISS

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THINK I MIGHT GET A NEW MODEL THIS YEAR THE ONE I HAVE IS SO TWENTY–TWELVE

I BET YOU WATCH THIS E CARD ON A SMART PHONE
ACH WE WISH THAT WE COULD BE A SMART PHONE

SAFE TO SHUT DOWN
WE MUSTN’T FROWN
OUR SONG IS DONE
LOFT HERE WE COME

BEEP BEEP BEEP
LIKE AND RETWEET

For more information on James Houston's work, click here.

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