These guys are the Chirpy Chips. With their sea anemone lead singer and a sparkling electronic sound, this unique four-piece has been setting the Inkopolis Top 40 on fire! Take a listen to their latest single, Shellfie, which is also the background music you'll be hearing during battles now!
The Chirpy Chips are a four-person chiptune-style band. Two of their songs were added in Version 2.0.0 of Splatoon, with two more were released in Version 3.0.0 of Splatoon 2,[3] and two more with the release of the Chill Season 2023 in Splatoon 3. They briefly disbanded sometime before the release of their Splatoon 2 songs, but quickly reformed.[4]
Harmony is the band's vocalist and synth player, a relaxed sea anemone who goes her own way.[5] Since her voice is altered in the band's music, she usually lip-syncs during live performances. She is in charge of the band's visuals. She exhibits peculiar movements when singing and talks in a loose manner between songs, which is popular with fans. However, due to her lack of motivation, she is often late for practice. Similarly to Annie, she has a bright color scheme and a small clownfish in her hair, which is dying due to neglect.[6] In the band's second album cover, she is shown making music using various Nintendo consoles.
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Things may have an official name in another language, but currently have no official English name. English translations of these names are unofficial. Note: The name of BariBari
Clash redirects here. For the weapon, see Clash Blaster.
Clash is the band's guitarist and backup vocalist, an uncontrollable, brightly-colored Inkling.[5] He has bright purple tentacles styled into large spikes and what appears to be four fangs instead of the typical three. He has a sunny disposition and epitomizes the band's energy. He was formerly a member of a punk band called BariBari and formed the Chirpy Chips with Orion later on. He likes big vending machines and has an irresistible urge to run on any downhill slopes he sees, causing him to run off a lot.[6] Like Harmony, he lip syncs during performances.[7]
Orion
Orion is the band's bassist, a shy flapjack octopus who does things at their own pace.[5] On the band's first two album covers, they wear a shirt referencing the album art of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon, but with a squid-shaped prism. They are the band's composer, though they also compose their own music and quietly post it online. They like to make sure the band keeps a chiptune sound, but they dislike performing and standing out in public. They are an intellectual and geeky type who likes things that are strange and outdated.[6]
Sid
Sid is the band's drummer, a crab who quietly watches over the others.[5] They are the band's oldest member and have played for several other bands in the past, gaining a strong reputation for their musical techniques. They rarely ever take the lead, rather focusing on supporting the others. They are usually easygoing but are known to quietly snap once a year.[6] Their shirt design bears a symbol resembling the button.
Poorly drawn art of the Chirpy Chips from the Chill Season 2023 trailer
Trivia
The Chirpy Chips were the second band in Splatoon to have their name changed for localization, the first being Turquoise October. Their original Japanese name, "ABXY", is likely a reference to the , , , and buttons on the Wii U GamePad and other Nintendo controllers.
The text on their album art loosely resembles this name.
Additionally, the format of their Japanese name is likely a reference to the Japanese chiptune band YMCK, which has a similar style of music.
The Chirpy Chips are also the only non-idol music group to retain their original name in the Chinese and Korean localizations after having it changed for other languages.
The Chirpy Chips Band Tee is a Chirpy Chips-themed piece of clothing, featuring a recolored version of their logo and a small pin with the face of their drummer.
The Heavy Splatling Remix appears to be a Chirpy Chips-themed weapon; it has a sticker on the side with their name in Inkling, its color scheme is similar to that of their album art, and "Remix" may be a reference to their electronic style. However, this connection is never addressed in-game.
The members glow in the dark in sync with their music during performances, which they are popular for.[7]
According to Orion, none of the band members can dance.
The Chirpy Chips are the only non-idol band to have new battle music introduced in all three Splatoon games.
Additionally, it is the only band to have been added to multiple games post-launch, having been added in post-launch updates in all three games.
Etymology
Sid's name possibly comes from the 6581 SID (Sound Interface Device), a sound generator chip from the Commodore 64, commonly used by chiptuners, possibly also combined with the name of Sid Vicious, a famous punk musician.
Clash's name is likely a reference to punk band The Clash given his punk band origins.
It is also conceptually similar to his Japanese name "Noiji" (transcription of "noisy"), as in a noisy cymbal crash.
Orion's name is possibly a reference to Orion Software, a music production software for Mac and Windows.
It is also likely because without the "O", Orion would be pronounced similarly to their Japanese name "Raian".
The Japanese names are likely based on the sound channels of the Ricoh 2A03, which was used in Nintendo's Famicom and NES.
↑The Korean localization was initially inconsistent regarding the band's name; Harmony's dialogue referred to it as "ABXY" while other in-game elements like the jukebox and some promotional materials credited its music to "Chirpy Chips".[8] Later updates corrected the names to consistently use "ABXY".
References
↑Harmony: "[...]Ugh, that was a lot. Orion talks like they're playing bass—EXTRA."