It's safe to say that at this point, the 8-bit culture/VGM movement/Chiptune scene is still a relatively small subculture (although, perhaps gaining momentum).
But, there seems to be a common denominator among everyone we've spoken with in connection with the community, and that is a passion for honest exploration.

There seems to be a huge pull for integrity in the chiptune scene, which may be common of an emerging subculture, but it makes it easy to differentiate between someone who is genuine and someone who is here with ulterior motives.
That is not to say that talent and hard work go unrewarded.
The best part about the chiptune community is, as Will and Jesse discuss during the interview, that due to the nature of artists using retro hardware and homespun software, it is almost necessary to have an open source community.

Industries like technology, fashion, and even the automotive industry (as we saw recently with Tesla), have begun to return to open source information.
In a TED Talk on Fashion, Johanna Blakley explained how fashion has never had the luxury of copyright, but those limitations have propelled designers towards constant innovation and has forced them to continually rethink their approach and everything they create.

If trendsetters like Tesla are paving the way by sharing more and more of themselves, perhaps it only makes sense that a community like that of 8-bit/chiptunes, built on teamwork, networking, and sharing can thrive in a time like this. As the global community continues to destroy outdated walls and dogmas of exclusivity from years gone by, it is interesting to see if such freedom of information will lead to accelerated growth.
An Interview With 1000 Needles

For our third chiptunes interview, we talk with Jesse and Will of the ChipBand 1000 Needles, out of Los Angeles, who use Logic, an Audrinoboy, an original Nintendo Game Boy, an NES, live instruments and vocals. Jesse and Will give us an insider's look at what is perhaps one of the most authentic artistic communities today, and share a little about their passion for 8-bit, chiptunes and everything nerdy.

Music Featured in this Session:
Track: Cloudy Face - Album: Hearts of Gears (Not Yet Released)
Track: Ghost/Hack - Album: Hearts of Gears (Not Yet Released)

Find the Music of 1000 Needles on www.1000Needles.Bandcamp.com

(Thank you Will and Jesse!)

Intro Music:
Provided under creative commons license.
from www.FreeHipHopBeats.com
Produced by The Passion HiFi

Outro Music: 
License: Public Domain
Don't Sell It, Don't Give It Away
Oscar Woods

For the foreseeable future, our existing posts will no longer be available as a podcast but are hosted on Soundcloud.

https://soundcloud.com/blaqkbox/blaqkbox-podcast-3