A Night Of Nintendocore: Horse The Band At Paper Tiger

Horse the Band has long been credited as the inventors of Nintendocore: a genre that fuses the brutality of metalcore with vintage 8-bit synths and frenetic, often surreal lyrics. Albums like The Mechanical Hand and A Natural Death cemented their legacy as both sonic innovators and unapologetic oddballs. Over the past two decades, the Southern California band has built a cult following drawn to their chaotic energy and offbeat humor.

Their stop at Paper Tiger in San Antonio felt part video game boss battle, part existential meltdown.

Follow Lauren Hernandez’s account of a night spent in the glitch-filled heart of Nintendocore.

I’m quitting music photography, for good.

It’s too hard to take the photos I love these days. And I’m hungover.

The Paper Tiger was on edge tonight. Making us take off our studded cuffs, checking wristbands for the mainstage, not letting me shoot with flash (fuck you for that one actually.)

But the crowd was one of the chillest ones I’ve seen.

“Yah, someone spilled their beer all over my neck and then started licking it off,” Cyrus told me.

The bands were all different and fantastic.

Palefade by Lauren Hernandez

PaleFade is just fucking great. I love them so much. Their music is perfect. Live, they are even better.

The guitarist said if he could turn the sky any color, he’d make it purple. In a fight, if the only weapons he could choose from were swords or chainsaws, he’d choose chainsaws.

Flake by Lauren Hernandez

Flake was shockingly great. They are from Wichita, KS.

“Does anyone know where that is?!”

Yes, I was just there a week ago...

Their music sounds like the song Kansas by Microwave, which encapsulates the loneliness of that state more than any other noise could. The lead singer looked very sad. He was wearing a Jackass shirt. His voice was so, so good. They put everything into their performance. They have nothing else to lose.

Lagrimas by Lauren Hernandez

Lagrimas were fucking everything. I have no words for their immense talent. Everyone loved them. They are raw and authentic. They follow through on their anarchy. The guitarist said his favorite cheese is pepper jack. Great choice.

Horse The Band by Lauren Hernandez

And Horse the Band was the most fun I’ve ever had in a photo pit. I don’t think I heard a second of their music, I was just completely overwhelmed by their everything.

“This is like... another extreme,” Kendall said.

I mean, the lead singer’s guest vocalist was a house plant, and one guy in a neon pink mesh top and short shorts just played the triangle and jumped into the crowd about four times per song?

I mean, they were awesome.

Every band tonight was.

But is that reason enough to keep pursuing this shit? I guess I’ll look through my photos and see…