To look at the past performances of techno composer Squarepusher, you could easily confuse him with any number of Daft Punk wanna-be acts out there. In his latest "collaboration," however, Squarepusher (whose real name is Tom Jenkinson) may have out-done even the masters themselves. The album is called simply Music for Robots and features five tracks of the sort of stuff you might assume robots would listen to when not fixing you a drink or mowing the lawn.
What's interesting about the album is that, though its composer is very much flesh and blood, the music is performed entirely by robot band members. The band is called Z-Machines, and they're a three-unit band that could likely go toe-to-actuator with even the most excellent of fleshy musicians out there. A robot called MACH playes lead guitar with a full compliment of 78 fingers and 12 picks. COSMO is the creepy-looking robot keyboard player. Rounding out the trio, behind its own customized 22-drum kit, is robo-drummer ASHURA.
Music for Robots is a five-track album that will be released April 8th. For right now, you can check out the Z-Machines' chops in their single "Sad Robot Goes Funny," below. We're not sure how many folks out there will actually pay to go see a pre-programmed performance by a trio of robots, but with your average pop star already lip-synced and auto-tuned within an inch of existence, audiences might actually be ready to take that next step toward fully-automated concerts. Maybe someday the Z-Machines won't even need a composer, but will be orchestrating their own hit singles for the robot servant crowd.
Warp Records, via The Verge
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