Remember when Guitar Hero first made its’ way into the homes of every American household? The excitement was electrifying! It transported us back to our 15-year-old self and allowed us to rock out.

Ah…. Good times.

I think their success was due to the secret desire to be a rock star!  Even students like me who’ve taken a few months of lessons never got close enough to stardom. Lessons were just so hard.

Having a game that was based on colors, fun & popular music, casual musical experience and interaction with other rockers gave life to a dead dream. For that moment, I envisioned being on stage wishing it were that easy…

But, what if it really IS?

I found a company that gives the ability to play in 60 seconds. That’s one minute!

In lessons, mustering the energy to practice took 30 minutes. They claim to do this with their new color method innovation where you match colors just like you do in Guitar Hero.  Decals are placed on your keyboard and matched with colored lyrics (sheet music) found on their database. Funny thing is, the sheet music isn’t even music. It was a page of colored words. My 11-year-old self was expecting the frustration of Mrs. Fendle’s music lessons so seeing simple colored song lyrics was intriguing and encouraging, so I pressed on.

With a little skepticism, I tried their “PLAY FREE” trial. No credit card is needed so I signed up. They emailed links to the sample decals, a handful of popular songs and easy 2 minute tutorials.  After a little time, I was set up and ready to match colors. First stop, Adele.

The quick 2 minute Adele tutorial was shocking because she pointed out in seconds what my piano teacher failed to do in 5 months. Sure, there’s no real learning going on and I’ll never play Chopin but it brought me further than Mrs. Fendle ever did. It was really easy to follow along and I didn’t have to know theory, practice scales and play boring music. I jumped straight to what mattered: the accompaniment.  With Guitar Hero, you match colors and rock your best air guitar. With IVOREEZ, you match colors and actually PLAY.  Interesting….

Here’s a plus:  Early 2017, they’re launching their guitar, bass, drums color match instruments so a group can play classic rock tunes in 60 seconds! Can’t wait to try that out with my leopard stretch pants and heavy eyeliner!

Here are the only 2 setbacks I saw: 1. It works best with songs you know because you’re playing accompaniment only.  2. If you aren’t a singer, you need to find a singer or hum/whistle along. Not a bad exchange for making me a rock star in 60 seconds, though. Overall, it’s a fun experience and I can see this becoming the next karaoke or newest gaming trend.

So, give ‘em a try and prepare to be astonished.

By Ariana Anderson