Band of drones can play music better than your average human

You’ve never heard Strauss performed quite like this. The team at KMel Robotics has assembled a band of hexrotor drones that “have taken up new instruments to play some fresh songs.” That “fresh” description isn’t exactly serious, as each of the three pieces performed date back either multiple decades or hundreds of years. After kicking off the three song setlist with “Also sprach Zarathustra,” the drones move on to “Carol of the Bells” and close with “The Star-Spangled Banner.” And the end result sounds surprisingly great.

“The hexrotors create music in ways never seen before, like playing a custom single string guitar hooked up to an electric guitar amp,” the company says. They even manage to play drums and crash cymbals with the help of a deconstructed piano action. And we can’t forget about the bells — there are many of them. Clearly a ton of work went into producing this; KMel notes that it had support from Intel and Lockheed Martin in bringing the band together. And soon the “Flying Robot Rockstars” will be going on tour. Attendees at the USA Science and Engineering Festival in Washington, DC this weekend will be able to catch a live rendition of the set.