Scottish chiptune icon Sabrepulse onstage (photo by manu_el_o_matic via Flickr)

The graphics may have been horrible and it may have been a hassle to blow on the cartridges when they froze, but the nostalgia of old-school video games will never die. And neither will their epic soundtracks. For chiptune producers, these soundtracks aren’t just fun memories; they’re inspiration.

The tiny but emerging genre of chiptune music uses classic consoles like Atari, NES, and Game Boy to create low-tech 8-bit electronica tunes. Seattle chiptune artists include leeni, whose more melodic pop sound incorporates vocals almost like a female hellogoodbye set to Game Boys, and Fighter X, with a techno feel incorporating breakbeats and some house-style rhythms.

“It’s pretty much like doing a DJ set with my Game Boys,” says Nick Walthew of Fighter X.

The genre was biggest in the mid-eighties, when 8-bit music was the easiest kind for amateurs to create on a computer. Now, in spite of leaps in technology, the movement is slowly beginning to develop a following, enabled by programs like LSDJ and Nanoloop put on Game Boy cartridges to operate as a synthesizer.

But the scene isn’t just for gamer geeks. In fact, Walthew says he was drawn more to electronic music in general before diving into chiptune as a genre.

“I never really grew up with a Game Boy,” Walthew admits, citing the Scottish artist Sabrepulse as a major influence entering the genre. “I just thought the idea of taking a console and using its hardware to make music was a cool idea.”

Sabrepulse, whom Walthew considers the biggest chiptune artist in the world, and Fighter X will be sharing the stage with San Diego chiptune DJ trash80 and local duo KGHB at Northwest Folklife this weekend.

KGHB, who mainly use the NES console, are well-known for their stage antics and crazy costumes. Naturally, the audience can expect anyone who makes music with gaming systems to play around, throw in a few surprises, and deliver a show unlike anything you’ve seen before.

“I think a lot of people will like that,” Walthew says. “There’ll be lots of fist-pumping in the air.

Catch Sabrepulse, trash80, Fighter X, and KGHB at Northwest Folklife’s 8-Bit Showcase, Saturday at 7pm at the Vera Project.