This past week, our friends at Nerdy Show added another podcast to their “Nerdy Showcase” roster, further satiating our deepest, pocket-protector wearing, geeked-out desires. Joining the all-gay, all-geek podcast Flame On!, is the music-focused creation of celebrated indie-rocker Marc with a C, entitled The Real Congregation. Launched two-years ago at WPRK in Winter Park, FL, The Real Congregation is a weekly journey into the recesses of the retro lo-fi loving, record geek’s music collection. The hour-long podcast has featured tracks ranging from The Dead Milkmen to Living Colour, Pink Floyd to Red Pony, Atom And His Package to Zappa and all points in between, plus there’s always plenty of insightful discussion and the occasional special guest.

“Season Two” of the series debuted over at Nerdy Show on Tuesday, November 8th, with new episodes available every Tuesday. The new season’s first episode dubbed “Wool Hat Optional” includes the insights of Nerdy Show co-founder and Cluster 1‘s Cap Blackard on issues such as the latest Beach Boy’s re-issue, Michael Nesmith, and Thomas Dolby’s new stuff. Check out the entire episode here, and subscribe to the show on iTunes.

This year’s judges are some heavy hitters in the name of nerd-rap. Video game connoisseurs MegaRan (aka Random), 8-Bit Duane, and My Parent’s Favorite Music join the likes of comic book-inspired spitters Adam WarRock, The Wordburglar, and Tribe-One.

What is your prize for concocting the best beat? The aforementioned rappers will each select their personal favorite, and create an original rhyme over it. The eventual outcome will be a one-of-a-kind, six-track mixtape with music solely provided by the nerd kingdom. Note some fine print details like keeping the tune under four minutes long and the quality at 128 kbps or better.

The contest promptly ends on May 31st at 11:59pm EST. Head over to the Nerdy Show for all the details on the Marvel Vs Capcom 3-on-3 Mixtape Melee.

For years, musicians have whined and complained about Guitar Hero and Rock Band, basically saying, “If you’re going to spend all that money, why not just get the real thing?” Well, that argument is now moot. Simply because when Rock Band 3 debuts this fall, you’re going to be doing a little more than just play keyboards. You’re going to be teaching yourself how to play each and every instrument.

We’d love to digress, but Blackard and his compatriot Triforce Mike [Pandel] do a much better job. One little tidbit we’ll note, however, is that Harmonix has developed a guitar that’s both for the game and actual guitar playing. In other words, you can plug it into an amp and jam away. You can tell how excited we are, now it’s your turn…

If you want to know more about what’s going on at E3, or you’re just a closet nerd like us, head on over to Nerdy Show‘s official site and watch their video updates and/or subscribe to their podcast via iTunes.

Since June of last year, the DC Universe has been under siege. The dead are coming back to life and harvesting the hearts of the living when they’re ripe with emotion. This is the “Blackest Night” that Watchmen scribe Allan Moore prophesied years ago in the pages of Green Lantern. The Green Lantern Corps are joined by other ring-wielders from across the color spectrum, each embodying an emotional force –- rage, greed, fear, will, hope, compassion, and love. Only their combined forces can bring light to the darkness and put an end to the enemies of existence, The Black Lanterns. This event doesn’t just affect the Green Lanterns; every DC character, living or dead, has been thrown into the fray!

March is the climactic finale of Blackest Night. There’s been 10 months of event books, cross-overs, tie-ins, and years of foreshadowing and lead-up to this epic storyline — more than enough material to forge into an incredible song.  So pick up that Fender Strat, boot up the Fairlight CMI, get the band back together, and unleash your geek-love with musical ferocity. The Blackest Night Song Fight has begun. Your song can be in any genre or style — ska, techno, folk rock, death metal, chiptunes, gangsta rap -– even instrumentals are accepted if you can tie them into the theme. The possibilities are infinite. Listen to the Nerdy Show gang debut the contest in their podcast episode, “Bring Da Amber Lamp Corps” to get some ideas.

This is the first contest in the “Epic Fan Music Challenge” series, which asks listeners to show their fan-love by composing an original song based on one specific item of fandom.  Nerdy Show’s previous contest debuted their “Rare Game Remix Series” with Tetris Rap Attack. Participants sampled the score to the over-looked Nintendo game Tetris Attack and then crafted hip-hop beats from it.  The winning beats were rapped over by the genre-bending indie rapper (and confessed nerd) Astronautalis, with 2nd and 3rd place beats rapped over by Nerdcore rappers Masurao of Krondor Krew and MC Coolwhip, respectively.  Check out their episode “Tetris Rap Attack” to hear the winning tracks as well as an interview with Astronautalis.

What prizes are in store for Blackest Night Song Fight’s winners? First place gets you a $100 shopping spree on A Comic Shop’s online store and the opportunity to kick off Nerdaplaooza 2010 (the world’s largest nerd music festival) by playing your song at the pre-party (headlined in 2009 by Schaffer the Darklord). Second and third places get you a smattering of comic book and nerd music goodness, including an original 1984 Green Lantern action figure, and copies of Eisner-nominated Atomic Robo signed by writer/creator and Nerdy Show co-host Brian Clevinger.

So what are you waiting for? Head over to the contest page and start writing!

Nerdy Show will debut the three winning songs and select runners up in April, just as the Blackest Night ends and Brightest Day begins. Be sure to subscribe to them on iTunes for weekly doses of awesomeness, and come to CoS’s March 19th SXSW Party, sponsored by Nerdy Show and headlined by video game rock gods The Protomen.

Turns out, Astro is a dweeb too and the game in question, Tetris Attack is one of his favorites. So faithful CoS readers, if you or someone you know has the skills -– yours will be graced with the rhymes of a master. The young upstart whose latest album made it into our Top 100 Albums of the Decade list, who’s currently wowing Europe while on tour with Tegan and Sara, who blew us away last year at SXSW, and who is working on a collaborative album with P.O.S. could rap over YOUR BEATS!

Second and third place winners don’t go away empty handed, either! They get runner-up Nerdcore rappers Masurao of the all-ninja rap group Krondor Krew and recent Vanilla Ice-opener, MC Coolwhip , respectively. Contestants have all of December to complete the challenge, so don’t wait — especially since it’s already December 14th. For those up to the challenge, you can check out all the details as well as download all the samples you’ll need at NerdyShow.com’s contest page by clicking below:

This is your chance… to be all the nerd you can be.

That’s why there’s Nerdy Show. Run out of Orlando, FL, the online radio program is a weekly, hour-long segment that’s hosted by “Triforce” Mike Pandel, Brian Clevinger (of Atomic Robo and 8-bit Theater fame), John “hex” Carter, and our own Art Director/Staff Writer, Cap Blackard. For most music enthusiasts on here, it might be a little too left of the dial, but that’s if you’re unwilling to celebrate your inner geekdom. There’s really a whole lot of everything for everybody here. Topics range from hot-off-the-press video game updates, various nerdy music news, the low down on the comic world, a few important film updates, and the occasional conversation about the sexuality of Lord Zed from the Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers. Between all that, there’s a great, eclectic mix of music, too. This week, in fact, they’re celebrating the glory of metal! And who would have thought that the term came from “Born To Be Wild” by Steppenwolf? Or that Metroid was the most metal-like star in the Nintendo world? Who knew?

Anyhow, at its core, the program’s just downright fun. Pandel’s laugh is infectious, Clevinger chimes in with some goodies, Carter puts it all together, and Blackard brings the raw data. So, if you’re starved for something “different”, pressed for imeem or lala searches lately, then Nerdy Show is for you. It’s not like we all don’t need a fourth helping of pop-culture every once and awhile. And remember, for every Animal Collective fan, there’s a hundred closet Star Wars fans, too.

So, ch-ch-ch-check it out.