Added: 3 years ago
From: vlogbrothers
Views: 56,957
Sort by time | Sort by thread (beta)

Link to this comment:

Share to:
see all

All Comments (566)

Sign In or Sign Up now to post a comment!
  • I was terrified of that band. I didn't go to friends birthday parties because I didn't want to see the band. I still kinda feel like crying if I go to chuck-e-cheese now as a full grown adult and parent.

  • Gorillaz is the equivalent of rock afire explosion. check them out <3

    DFTBA

  • The extent of my knowledge of Showbiz Pizza amounts to my step mom, who used to be the person who dressed up as Billy Bob, and there was a birthday party full of like eight year old boys there once and they were swarming her and she got really hot in the costume with the little boys climbing all over her and she passed out and they took her bear hat off and started shouting "Billy Bob's a GIRL!!!!!"

  • Hank, today I was in a tiny charity shop and I saw rock-afire explosion 45 record. It was not the birthday song, but I thought of you nonetheless. If only you had a P.O. box, I'd send it to you, it only cost about a quarter.

  • .....so....many.....jump.....c­uts......

  • I remember going to Chucky Cheese's as a child and hiding in the slide whenever the robotic band would come out...I have no doubt I would do the same today.

  • Okay, nerdfighters back me up: does anyone remember a small room with strobe lights underneath the stage at Chuck E. Cheese? You had to crawl in it and feed a coin into the machine, and then the strobe lights would come on? Anyone? I remember this quite clearly, but none of my friends do. Anyone remember this, or was it all a dream?? :)

  • Interesting to compare the Rock-Afire explosion to the current iteration of the idea, which is probably something like Gorillaz.

  • I looked for the communtiy channel video, before you comment it didn't take that long because I used the dates on the video it was actually the first video I clicked, it's called irrational killer spider fears. It has a "2 years ago" mark, yeah, you're welcome.

  • I watched those clips of the automatron band in the doobleydoo. I blame you for the nightmares I'm going to be having for the next several months.

  • i looked and i cannot find that dang video.the one where she almost licked him.

  • The Chuck E. Cheese band always gave me the creeps!!! It could be because the one I would see was slowly breaking down thus making it even more scary to a little kid than it should have been. For real those things were only knocked out of my nightmares by my fear of clowns I developed after seeing the movie IT.

  • Hank, you really should use Google Chrome!!!

  • Hey, does anyone know the name of the CommunityChannel Hank refers to? I want to watch it but this is a billion years after the fact and she has uploaded many a video since than...

  • @BlackPlaydoh It's the "irrational killer spider fear" video. I just looked it up... :)

  • Really? Hank actually likes those? Becuase amnitronic thingies and people in costumes always have and will freak me out. I have memories of screaming when Chuck E Cheese tried to hug me and running to hide in the play thing.

  • Soo is there jus few rock afire left?

  • I think they used to have something like those in Chuck-E-Cheese? I don't think they sang original songs though.

  • Nevermind, I just searched it on Wikipedia and it turns out they were slowly replaced by ChuckECheese characters so that's what I saw. xP

  • Chuck E Cheese*

  • Whatever, Hank. Mitzi is beautiful.

  • I actually Tracked Down A rock afire Explosion band still playing in West Virginia .. Going to check it out not sure how well they work but will go to see it.

  • i remember this

  • LOL Using Firefox without Flashblock and NoScript... Really, dude. Use them and you can load all your tabs and nothing will play until you tell it. Just takes some getting used to NoScript, but once you do, life is better.

  • Absolutely! We didn't have Showbiz here in the UK, so I thought they were invented by Flamingoland, the theme park who had a Rock-A-Fire setup in '93. I thought I was the only kid in the world who cared about how excellent it was to watch a giant robot band yelling at me from a few feet away, without even a window in between us. You can imagine how pleased I was when I googled this in the mid-00s and found out what was really going on with them.

  • I loved the set of animatronic singing Christmas trees at the local mall when I was a kid - every year for years they would set them out and they sang Christmas songs. I miss them, which is odd becuase big animatronic characters often scare me. The Lilo and Stitch ride in Tomorrowland at Disney World or the Bug's Life ride in Animal Kingdom: VERY SCARY.

  • i wish showbiz was here so i could share it with my nieces and nephews. i am not sure i will ever have kids of my own but i enjoyed the place myself.

  • Everyone wants to be a wacky media whore

  • Wait, John Lennon was shot?! 

  • @DrBlank13 yeah how old are you?

  • thats amazing!

  • haha I was just watching your newer vids and felt like watching rockafire hips dont lie and then you popped up again! I love how you make videos on all the nerdiest subjects!! =)

  • Wow, somewhere Freddie Mercury is saying "man is this guy gay"

  • i talk about the rock-afire explosion alot my family tunes me out. i need someone to talk about with sometimes. i hate chuck e cheese and miss showbiz really badly.

  • @starrfisher The Rockafire Explosion had appeal to adults as well. I wish Showbiz was still around so I could view these shows again as an adult. I guess that's what youtube is for, lol.

  • Aww...good memories. I loved those guys

  • i love nerds

  • I remember being scared out of my witz when I woud go to see that band. That friggin gorilla would scare me to death. I was waiting for him to come off the stage and come after me. Now I think he is the coolest thing around

  • real errr

  • Hank speaks the truth. long live 1983!!!!

  • yeah, I miss the good ol' days..... :* (

  • Show Biz!!!! I loved the music. Of course I was around seven when I last heard the music.

  • Haha, Show Biz Pizza. Memoriesssss...

  • which communitychannel vid is he talking about?

  • @cafegirl1995

    I'm asking myself the same question just 11 months later, have you found it?

  • u forgot da part where no 1 gives a fuck wat dis nerd gots 2 say but other den dat u got it all my friend!

  • Never heard of them. Must go check out those videos! Wait, I watched a later video before this one, did you get one of these for your birthday?!

  • John Lennon, and Hank Green.. Best video i've seen in a while.

  • he can talk fast

  • Nice work. keep it up. mean time come for social media marketing for esteembpo**com

  • yeah, but its not his fault. the dude he just sucked off got sucked off by a girl right before him

  • Chuck E Cheese could be as good as the RAE if they can get the right songs and the right people and the right COMPANY... I love Fats and Dook... I love both Chuck E and the RAE.. The haters can screw off....

  • It depends on how he said, "That's what I'm talkin' about." Because the difference is as simple as what he stresses in the sentence...

  • I am amazed at how much you like the Chuck E. Cheese band....I'm fairly certain they terrified me.

  • @bethers326 um, get it right. it the Showbiz Pizza Place band! The Rock-Afire Explosion!

  • @bethers326 They're too boxy looking. I liked how the Rockafire robots were capable of facial expression.

  • I loved going to Showbiz Pizza to see that band! God, I miss the 80s.

  • All I can say is bless your heart.

  • As I was watching this, I had a flashback. I have this memory from when I was two or three and I swear that it is of Rockafire Explosion. I wish I could prove it to myself, but neither of my parents remember :-(

  • ShowBiz Pizza DOES still exist. just go tro Phenix City,AL and you will see THE PROOF!

  • Just a small name change. ;)

    FK

  • I'm with John on this. I hate animatronic puppets. They are so scary. I have a huge fear of them. Seriously, I had to hide my eyes during parts of this video. Also, no one pwns The Beatles.

  • >_> I just have an odd fear of puppets, so animatronics fall in the category... Some are... kinda... cute, but most just sccaaarrreeeee meeeeeee! It's kind of like clowns... They started with good intentions, but it ended with some unhappy campers. XP

    The Beatles rock indeed. ^_^ There's a kid in my school who looks JUST like John Lennon with the blue round glasses. He was wearing them for fun, and I was tempted to take a picture, because I miss John... T_T and he died before I was born! T__T

  • once showbiz pizza died, so did rockafire. It's good to see them making a comeback though. He is right, they were something nobody had ever seen before but everyone was really into them though.

  • I've got the Birthday LP. Found it at McKay's.. for free of all things...

  • I'm the creator of the Rock-afire Explosion and I give two thumbs up to this tribute rambling. It was so strange back in the early 80's when you kids were really young and we had to explain to your parents why Showbiz was better than Chuck E. Cheese. It was just strange that we had to point out that the RAE was in a different league than the CEC robots. We actually thought of ourselves as a rock band and they were just store window animation trying to pull a fast one on you kids.

    Aaron

  • Just thought I'd mention...your RAE puppets were more memorable to me as a kid then Chuck E. Cheese's. We never even had a ShowBiz pizza as far as I know...I saw the RAE band in a place called 'Circus Circus' back in the early 90's somewhere down in the Twin Cities of Minnesota.

  • @fanprograms You all were waaaaay better!

  • DAMN YOU CHUCK E, CHEESE! ... I only went to a billy bobs wonderland once in my life. I thought it was merly a dream. But now that I see that it was real after all. I will go to the remaining survivors and relive the lost part of my childhood.

  • omg I hate it when that happens with Firefox, haha.

  • I just watched the rockafire explosion do Hips Don't Lie. I have never seen anything more made of win, ever. I was terrified of them as a child, but that was wonderful. Thank you. That made my night.

  • Damn. Shame I wasn't born earlier. Looks like I missed out on something spectacular. Or something.

  • so funny. i was in the middle of no where growing up that i only saw a chuck e cheese finally as an adult when i took my nephew!

  • my last name is La Rue! duke la rue and i should hang out. ha.

  • OMG WE HAVE A ROCK-AFIRE EXPLOSION RIGHT HERE IN SPOKANE!!!! It's in a Wonderland, but still- we have one!

  • I don't like the beatles

  • The Rockafire was awesome, I miss it. I wish Youtube had the original videos still though.

  • hips don't lie is priceless. thanks hank, i like rocka fire explosion to. they have a band like this somewhere in oregon.. rocky & bullwinkles maybe.

  • Rock-afire will never die in my eyes. As long as there are fans like you (er, and me!) to keep them around, they'll be here for quite a long time.

  • Mmmm communitychannel

  • I remember Rock-Afire. I actually find it highly disturbing now that I am 19. At the age of 4, however, I was probably highly entertained.

  • Don't really like the new intro. But I still like you guys.

  • i have that same cup!! it was my grandma's because her name was mitzi :)

  • HOLY CRAP I loved this when I was little!! I would tell people about this band, and they would not believe me. It was at a Showbiz Pizza Place, but then they changed their name to "Funtime Pizza Circus", until they closed due to a rat infestation or something.

    SO GOOD.

  • Still gotta say, the Beatles version is better.

    But, I must say no more.

  • That sounds/looks just like the Chuck E Cheese band, I wonder if they were related companies or competitors. Also, in Williamsburg, Virginia, there is a Yankee Candle Factory that has an enormous clock that opens up on the hour to unleash and animatronic band that plays far longer than anyone would ever want. By the time they finish it's almost time for the next show.

  • Heres what you do. Get either a hunting rifle, or a molotov cocktail, get on the building on the other side of the street and then...

    You wait...

  • I see it everyday in my garage. I agree with you 100%!!!

  • I remember Rock-Afire from old birthday parties. I'd get mad when people were too loud for me to hear the robots banter.

  • uuuuuhh...I'm pretty sure that Paul McCartney took lead on "Birthday" and not John Lennon.

  • Okay. I really, really, really, really miss the old intro.

    I tried to not say it. I tried to hold it back and not complain but... but... bring it back. Please.

  • agreed.

  • i dont know.... i was really rather fond of the last intro. but this intro and "outro" will probably grow on me. i guess.

  • Outro is one of my favorite made-up-by-some-guy-and-used-s­o-much-it-became-legitimate words.

  • Great out-tro: love it.

    It was was the rather dull 2:40 in-tro that made it.

  • Is R-A-F like Chuck E Cheese? Man, Chuck's was awweeesooommmee.

  • they still scare me but i like them better b/c they're in MGMT's electric feel music video

  • haha ur hilarious!!!

    :D

  • They scared me , they were sort of weird.

    I love the new intro/outro by the way.

  • aha.....^^

  • Showbiz pizza still exists my dear! There is a Billy Bob's not far from where i live. :)

  • Where do you live?!?!?!?!?!? I'm definitely going there!!!

  • You said it was amazing for the world to come together and create an animatronic band that would play original music, like a cartoon band, only real-er. Try the Gorillaz. They had some pretty awesome music, and they were animated as well. Then YouTube the video of them at the 2006/2007 Grammy's, and it will blow your minddd. :3

    Thanksmuch!

  • omg i think i'm going to have nightmares because of those creepy rock-afire creatures! :D

  • when Showbiz went down I cried everytime my parents made me go to that horrid Chuck E Cheese... those posers have nothing on the Rock-Afire Explosion

  • Rock-a-Fire Explosion blows the lid off of Chuck-E-Cheese's... and I don't understand why Showbiz went under instead of the Chuck-E-Cheese monstrosity.

  • the robots at chuck e. cheese = creepy. lol.

  • I remember Rockfire from when I was a kid. It blew my mind at the time.

  • OMG have you seen them sing Electric Feel by MGMT? That song is amazing but the damn robots gave me nightmares!

  • Thanks for posting, Hank!

  • hmmmm....I'm not so sure I like the new intro.

  • I thought thats u XD! That was too cool! Your cousin is amazing! Thanks

  • This is not your father's "It's a Small World After All" is it?

  • omg.. they don't exist anymore?? WHY!!??

    lol

    I totally remember an untold number of birthday parties that were hosted by ShowBiz Pizza! ahhhh, memories!

  • yay beatles

  • Bizzarely like Max Headroom...Nice.

  • i disagree with the second point

  • Dang...Showbiz pizza was the stuff.

    Just FYI - at a small bowling alley in Nashville, TN they have a re-programmed Rock-Afire explosion...um...band?

  • god

  • in 1 of my birthday videos we were at shobiz and the band is playing the white album... specifically helter skelter

  • The outro is okay tho..

  • omg i remember those guys. that was one of my fave parts of pistle petes then it turned into peter pipers pizza and they took out the free merry go round and it became not as awesome as it was. it will always hold a special place in my heart. lol. i always thought it was better than chucky cheeses

  • I think when you said "You Say It's Your Birthday" you mean "Birthday" by the Beatles?

    :)

  • I miss the old intro.... :/ The new one just isn't made of awesome..

  • the new intros and outros are great!

  • Love it!!

  • i'm liking the new intro and outro though i miss seeing strawberry hill wine/vinegar :)

  • =O i so wanna see that..They seem very pimptastical

  • oooh communitychannel's present was a paper town book!!1

  • You know you're a Gen-X'er if this was an epic vid. . I don't know whether to say thanks or not. . . that band freaked me the hell out as a kid!

  • LOL!

  • Chuck E Cheese and this band scared the shite out of my children -

    and is 'outro' like 'deplane'?

  • The new intro and outro make me dizzy,

  • O_O...those..things were..creepy...

  • Robot rock, ftw!

    And I'm liking the new intro and outro. =]

  • oh lord those are so creepy!!

  • Those things seriously scared me as a kid. And watching those clips now brings that fear back... :|

  • you speak really fast (i know, this comment is kind of random...)

  • Love the intro and outro! And this Rock-Afire reminds me of the band Binky in Arthur. Hehe.

  • i miss the old intro.

  • I didn't know their name! I loved them. I grew up with Showbiz Pizza! You go Hank!

  • You know how they have those little I-Dog toys? The ones you plug into your iPod and they dance in rhythm to your songs as they play?

    If I ever become a millionaire, I'm going to buy a Rock-Afire Explosion set and set it up in my house, and program it to respond to the songs in my iPod when I plug it in. I could put it on Shuffle and get a whole setlist!

  • omg, for the first half of the video I thought Hank was saying, "rocket fire explosion", then I looked at the title of the video. :) tee hee.

  • comment

  • Happy New Years gents...

    Cheers... J.

  • wow, there are no words.

  • i cant believe you dissed mitzi. you take that back!

  • I cannot believe how much time I just spent watching those videos you linked and looking up Showbiz Pizza Place. lol. I don't remember Showbiz, rather I only remember Chuck E. Cheese and their animatronic shows.

  • I was a fan too.

  • I loved Show Biz Pizza when I was a kid! The old Show Biz Pizza in my town is now a medical supply store, but in the warehouse area you can still see the Show Biz retro striped paint job on the walls.

  • just curious.... do u always talk that fast or do u just do it for the show??????????

  • outro is the best word i've ever heard.

  • I'm half terrified half intrigued...

  • The band kind of freaks me out, but it's like awesome at the same time...

    - Ainslee/akmaccheese

  • The Rock-Afire Explosion scared the fire out of me.

  • the only one I could watch was Hips Don't Lie without closing it. it was freaky... sorry Hank, not my thing.

  • This probably how the furry fandom originated

  • Daft Punk?

  • how can you not get nightmares with those.

  • Hmm...it's strange how lately I've been thinking about Chuck E. Cheese, and this video just encourages that. It's a shame that I never got to go to the real Showbiz.

  • I don't like the sound of the new intro but at least it's the shortest one you all have had..

  • ok, so next week you definatly have to sing a popular rock-afire explosion song for song wednesday

  • whoa.

  • i feel so young. :( the closest thing to that band that i know of is the chuck e cheese robotic band. idk what it's called.

    both "bands" creep me out.

    btw, i love the new outro! as well as the intro! :D

  • I so remember them! At circus pizza and we would always go behind the curtains to check them out lol

  • HOLY CRAP I remember when Showbiz was Showbiz before Chuck E Cheese bought them out.

  • They had one of those bands down here when I was younger at a game/pizza plaace called Dandy Bear and it was AWESOME! Now it's a Chinese buffet >_>

    -Julian

  • I love you hank but...

    I have to agree with John .. i dont like them

    in fact

    THEY ARE VERY CREEPY! im going to have nightmares about tht monkey dude now o.o

  • new outro :D

  • YES! i will learn to play book 8 now.

  • anyone else getting constant movie lag?

  • WHAT BEATLES WHERE

    :D Yay Rock-Arire Explosion

  • yes to the new intro and outro. i actually watched natalie's video first and thought that was pretty cool. then i thought it was cooler that you didn't know beforehand. now, however, i'm worried about us all forming an entirely self-contained, self-referencing culture on youtube that becomes almost cult-like... :-/

  • LMAO, cheers to the new outro!

  • 12000 viewer

  • I like the intro and the outro. It's simple, and represents the Vlogbrother's project quite well.