August 22, 2026
Capital Ballroom, Victoria, BC
Spoiler Alert
When I had the good fortune to be invited to see The Cybertronic Spree for free, I knew I was in for an awesome night of nostalgia and heavy metal, backed by animated sequences celebrating anime, video games and The Transformers: The Movie. For newcomers, they’re a Toronto rock band whose sentai-style costumes, hard-rock covers, original songs and glam-rock theatrics make their stage personas larger than life. I’d seen their YouTube videos and followed their rise as a pop-culture band. Once I learned their latest P.R.O.M. tour, short for Programmable Read-Only Memories, used a playful rock-opera narrative to stitch the concert together, I knew it was time to see them live.
The Capital Ballroom was packed when the headliners took the stage! They began with “The Transformers Theme” before leading into “Death of Optimus Prime.” An effigy of the fallen leader made its way through the audience, and I even had a moment to touch it and mourn the great Autobot. All was not lost. As Optimus Prime proclaimed, and yes, I’m slightly misquoting him, an Autobot would one day rise from the ranks and use the Matrix to light their darkest hour. Until that day, till all are one. By following along to the movie, we have a general narrative that follows along the G1 continuity, with the episode “Cosmic Rust” included (which sees the return of this Prime).
The lineup for tonight’s show brought together Autobots, Decepticons and even a Quintesson. The Quintesson Judge played what looked like rhythm guitar, while Jazz appeared as a special guest on lead guitar. Hot Rod handled bass and vocals, and Spike Witwicky took over the drums. Normally, Shockwave would be there but he was not present. On socials, it was reported that both he and Unicorn were unavailable, one due to illness and the other because of an injury. Arcee provided vocals and backup synth, while Soundwave worked the keyboards. Together, they rocked the night away.
Had there been a proper cartoon explanation for why they teamed up is that they landed on Earth together and discovered the power of rock ’n’ roll. It’s a Bill and Ted style moment which speaks volumes, and without that music to keep them charged rather than seek out Energon supplies, they would face total shutdown. During the show, a transmission from Shockwave revealed there’s a threat coming to Earth. And because this bandmate appeared through a monitor rather than appearing on stage, it meant the show is a concept album coming to life rather than watching these Cybertronians belting out the nostalgia.
And yes, I have to spoil it: Starscream made an appearance as the big bad evil guy the band had to defeat.
In terms of the story being told, I suspect the Cybertronic Spree landed on a parallel Earth that was once part of the Kidd Video universe. That’s the only MTV-style explanation I can offer which explains the narrative the video presentation offered. While this is pure speculation, the anime clips which used moments from Vampire Hunter D and Robotech, said plenty. When it included the band looking like the Power Rangers whilst the band performed the song, the Sentai fan in me was very pleased.
As an aside, the idea of performing covers of cartoon themes as a heavy metal track isn’t unique. Swedish power-metal musician Tommy Johansson leads Majestica and formerly played guitar for Sabaton. He recently released one cartoon-theme metal medley, followed by another. And together, they cover everything from DuckTales, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Pokémon to Transformers, ThunderCats, He-Man and Inspector Gadget. Another artist who focuses on Macross is Angelo Bissanti, and his music is through the roof!
Although one song from one IP is never enough, the broader Macross universe has complete soundtracks to mine. Although this anime is better known as Robotech in North America, licensing won’t allow for that given Harmony Gold’s attitude of protecting their version beyond reason.
With other series like Lensmen, sometimes it’s better to be safe. Can anyone else hear Mari Iijima’s “Ai Oboete Imasu ka?” from Macross: Do You Remember Love? transformed into a soaring heavy-metal anthem? It’s been done. Here’s the link. Heck, if Michael Bradley can perform power-rock versions of the songs he sang as Yellow Dancer in Robotech: The New Generation, why not?
For much of the concert, I found myself more drawn to the well-designed supporting video than to the songs. That changed when the band turned to original material, including “Turbo Heart” and the newer “Shattered Glass.” They nailed both, and those performances became the true highlights of the night. Arcee showed off an impressive vocal range and the Cybertronic Spree proved how well they can be as an original band rather than pigeonholing themselves as a tribute act.
Honestly, once I noticed that Soundwave’s oversized helmet made his proportions look less than cartoon-accurate, it became tough to unsee. Even the G1 purist in me wondered why this Decepticon behaved so far out of character. Soundwave is usually calm and reserved. I had to turn on my suspension of disbelief.
Given his rowdier disposition, Rumble would have been the better choice. After looking at past concert footage to remind myself, I realized this is the norm. Although this Cassetticon is part of the wider entourage, as is Bumblebee, whether either are required depends on how many can fit and if the roster is supposed to change between legs of a nation-wide tour, if at all.
Jazz’s guest appearance was simply a welcome surprise and had a meet & greet was offered, he’d be the one I’d want the most (with Unicron being top most of course)! Although I noticed most of his face was covered by the visor, I also knew these representations are not supposed to be 100% cartoon accurate.
Apparently, anything can happen after the lights go down and the performers transform into their real-world Headmaster selves. That includes falling ill, getting hurt or something else in the human world. I like the analogy because that’s the sort of deep-cut only a hardcore Transformers fan can respect and register. Once human, they go about their usual business.
Smaller concerts should feel alive, but raw volume shouldn’t obscure what the musicians are doing. The sound levels could’ve used some tweaking, and that’s because there were a few moments where the words weren’t clearly heard or feedback muddied the sound. And when I observed a keytar and keyboard in use at the same time, I had to wonder which was for show and which wasn’t. These are minor technical complaints, though.
Yes, Soundwave would want to tune it down, but when he’s onstage raising the energy, there’s an in-universe explanation: these Transformers need enough energon to stay awake, perform, and eventually jet off island with the assistance of Sky Lynx. Victoria marked the end of the West Coast leg, giving the band time to rest before heading east for more Canadian and American dates. Their tour isn’t over yet!
The Cybertronic Spree on YouTube
