Compressorhead
{{Short description|Rock band made up of robot musicians}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Compressorhead
| image = Compressorhead at the Wireless Festival, London 2014.jpg
| caption = Compressorhead performing in 2014 at the Wireless Festival, London
| image_size = 250
| landscape = yes
| genre = Heavy metal, Punk rock
| years_active = 2013–2019
| website = {{url|robocross-machines.com}}
| current_members = Fingers, Bones, Stickboy, Junior, Mega-Wattson, Hellgå Tarr
}}
Compressorhead was an animatronic robot band created by Berlin-based artist Frank Barnes and collaborators Markus Kolb, Stock Plum, and John formerly of NoMeansNo, as musical director, songwriter and vocalist.
The six "performers" in the band are all robots made from recycled parts, playing real electric and acoustic instruments and controlled via a MIDI sequencer.{{Cite web|url=http://www.gibson.com/news-lifestyle/features/en-us/meet-compressorhead-the-worlds-most-metal-band.aspx|title=Meet Compressorhead — The World's Most Metal Band|last=Leonard|first=Michael|date=2013-04-09|website=www.gibson.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130416032139/http://www2.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/Meet-Compressorhead-The-Worlds-Most-Metal-Band.aspx|archive-date=2013-04-16|access-date=2015-11-27}} The project initially debuted in 2013 with four robots (a guitarist, bassist, drummer and a small drummer's "assistant"), performing covers of famous rock songs. Two more robots (a vocalist and rhythm guitarist) were added to the group in 2017.
In 2023, the entire band was seen in the movie Circus Maximus by rapper and producer Travis Scott. They would assist him while he would perform the song "Sirens" inside the stadium of Circus Maximus in Rome.
History
The first four robots (Stickboy, Junior, Fingers and Bones) were built between 2007 and 2012 and their first recorded performance was held at the Bülent Ceylan Show on the German RTL television channel in March 2012.{{Cite news|url=https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/compressorhead-robots-perform-ac-dc-classic-on-german-tv/|title=COMPRESSORHEAD Robots Perform AC/DC Classic On German TV|date=2013-02-02|work=Blabbermouth|access-date=2019-10-14|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131010051111/http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/compressorhead-robots-perform-ac-dc-classic-on-german-tv/|archive-date=2013-10-10}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.compressorhead.rocks/history.html#|title=History|website=Compressorhead Official Website|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190609103218/http://compressorhead.rocks/history.html|archive-date=2019-06-09|access-date=2019-10-14}} Their first performance in front of a live audience was at the 2013 Big Day Out festival in Australia.{{Cite news|url=https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/robotic-metal-band-tours-australia-for-big-day-out/news-story/adbb2748a6c6c3b1cd3ad694f4dd30da|title=Robotic metal band tours Australia for Big Day Out|date=2013-01-07|work=news.com.au|access-date=2019-10-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012180419/https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/robotic-metal-band-tours-australia-for-big-day-out/news-story/adbb2748a6c6c3b1cd3ad694f4dd30da|archive-date=2019-10-12|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://musicfeeds.com.au/news/robot-band-compressorhead-part-of-big-day-out-2013/|title=Robot Band Compressorhead Part Of Big Day Out 2013|last=Zanotti|first=Marc|date=2012-11-02|work=Music Feeds|access-date=2019-10-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150112175410/http://musicfeeds.com.au/news/robot-band-compressorhead-part-of-big-day-out-2013/|archive-date=2015-01-12|url-status=live}} The band gained initial notoriety on YouTube throughout 2013, uploading videos of classic rock covers from bands such as Motörhead, AC/DC, Pantera and the Ramones.{{Cite book|last1=Davies|first1=Alex|last2=Crosby|first2=Alexandra|title=Cultural Robotics |chapter=Compressorhead: The Robot Band and Its Transmedia Storyworld |date=2016|editor-last=Koh|editor-first=Jeffrey T.K.V.|editor2-last=Dunstan|editor2-first=Belinda J.|editor3-last=Silvera-Tawil|editor3-first=David|editor4-last=Velonaki|editor4-first=Mari|chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-42945-8_14|series=Lecture Notes in Computer Science|volume=9549|language=en|publisher=Springer International Publishing|pages=175–189|doi=10.1007/978-3-319-42945-8_14|isbn=9783319429458|access-date=2019-10-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612020335/https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-319-42945-8_14|archive-date=2018-06-12|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/dustin-schoof/2013/04/robot_metal_band_compressorhead_gives_new_meaning_to_the_phrase_music_programming.html|title=Robot metal band Compressorhead gives new meaning to the phrase 'music programming'|last=Schoof|first=Dustin|date=2013-04-12|website=lehighvalleylive|language=en|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012180419/https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/dustin-schoof/2013/04/robot_metal_band_compressorhead_gives_new_meaning_to_the_phrase_music_programming.html|archive-date=2019-10-12|access-date=2019-10-12}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.boiseweekly.com/Cobweb/archives/2013/01/08/all-robot-band-compressorhead-plays-motorhead|title=All-Robot Band, Compressorhead, Plays Motorhead|last=Crisp|first=Andrew|date=2013-01-08|work=Boise Weekly|access-date=2019-10-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012180431/https://www.boiseweekly.com/Cobweb/archives/2013/01/08/all-robot-band-compressorhead-plays-motorhead|archive-date=2019-10-12|url-status=live}}
In early 2013, Barnes recruited John Wright of the Canadian punk band NoMeansNo and The Hanson Brothers as a songwriter and "musical director" for the group.{{Cite web|url=http://vishkhanna.com/2015/11/26/ep-227-john-wright-frank-barnes-of-compressorhead|title=Episode 227: John Wright & Frank Barnes of Compressorhead|website=Kreative Kontrol podcast with Vish Khanna|date=26 November 2015 |language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160722034946/http://vishkhanna.com/2015/11/26/ep-227-john-wright-frank-barnes-of-compressorhead/|archive-date=2016-07-22|access-date=2016-07-26}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.punknews.org/article/59282/interviews-john-wright-nomeansno-talks-about-writing-songs-for-the-robotic-band-compressorhead|title=Interviews: John Wright (Nomeansno) talks about writing songs for the robotic band Compressorhead|last=Gentile|first=John|website=punknews.org|date=2 November 2015 |language=en|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704200811/https://www.punknews.org/article/59282/interviews-john-wright-nomeansno-talks-about-writing-songs-for-the-robotic-band-compressorhead|archive-date=2018-07-04|access-date=2019-10-14}} Three songs from this collaboration were released via the band's YouTube page: the original songs "Compressorhead",{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYSCJWDUKXc|title=Compressorhead Vocalist Drive Unit Build Part1|website=YouTube|language=en-US|access-date=2016-07-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012180452/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYSCJWDUKXc|archive-date=2019-10-12|url-status=live}} "Speed Walking Lady"{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQOmwTpWWVQ|title=Battle of the GIANTS Robots VS Human|website=YouTube|language=en-US|access-date=2016-07-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151230112911/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQOmwTpWWVQ|archive-date=2015-12-30|url-status=live}} and an instrumental cover of the Hanson Brothers' song "My Girlfriend is a Robot".{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiIvtH3P8BA|title=Compressorhead in New York|website=YouTube|language=en-US|access-date=2016-07-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170506142306/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiIvtH3P8BA|archive-date=2017-05-06|url-status=live}}
In November 2015, the team behind the band started a crowdsourcing campaign on the platform Kickstarter{{Cite web|url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1335681368/building-robot-lead-vocalist-and-producing-first-a|title=Building a Robot Lead Vocalist and producing first Album|last1=Barnes|first1=Frank|last2=Kolb|first2=Markus|date=2015-10-31|website=Kickstarter|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151124004041/https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1335681368/building-robot-lead-vocalist-and-producing-first-a|archive-date=2015-11-24|access-date=2015-11-27|last3=Plum|first3=Stock}} to raise US$290,000 to build a robotic "singer".{{Cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/german-robot-rock-band-compressorhead-is-raising-money-on-kickstarter-to-build-a-singer-2015-11|title=A German rock band made of robots is raising money on Kickstarter to build themselves a singer|last=Cook|first=James|date=2015-11-18|work=Business Insider|access-date=2019-10-12|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012180420/https://www.businessinsider.com/german-robot-rock-band-compressorhead-is-raising-money-on-kickstarter-to-build-a-singer-2015-11|archive-date=2019-10-12}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/heavy-metal-band-compressorhead-wants-lead-singer-made-metal-n462891|title=Heavy Metal Band Compressorhead Wants a Lead Singer — Made of Metal|last=Eckardt|first=Andy|date=2015-11-16|work=NBC News|access-date=2019-10-12|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170810091322/http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/heavy-metal-band-compressorhead-wants-lead-singer-made-metal-n462891|archive-date=2017-08-10}}{{Cite web|url=https://metalinjection.net/latest-news/help-all-robot-band-compressorhead-build-a-robot-vocalist|title=Help All-Robot Band COMPRESSORHEAD Build A Robot Vocalist|last=Kennelty|first=Greg|date=2015-11-30|website=Metal Injection|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012180429/https://metalinjection.net/latest-news/help-all-robot-band-compressorhead-build-a-robot-vocalist|archive-date=2019-10-12|access-date=2019-10-12}}
In 2017, the band added a vocalist robot, Mega-Wattson (voiced by John Wright), and Hellgå Tarr, a second guitarist, to the band. NoMeansNo members also perform as multi-instrumentalists on Compressorhead's debut album, Party Machine.{{Cite web|url=https://nerdist.com/article/robot-metal-band-compressorhead-lead-singer/|title=Meet the New Lead Singer of Compressorhead, a Metal Band Made of Robots|last=Warner|first=Noelle|date=2018-06-25|website=Nerdist|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012180417/https://nerdist.com/article/robot-metal-band-compressorhead-lead-singer/|archive-date=2019-10-12|access-date=2019-10-12}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/roboter-band-compressorhead-unmenschlicher-schwermetall.2177.de.html?dram:article_id=402022|title=Unmenschlicher Schwermetall|last=Petersdorf|first=Martin|date=2017-11-30|work=Deutschlandfunk Kultur|access-date=2019-10-14|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180204163021/http://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/roboter-band-compressorhead-unmenschlicher-schwermetall.2177.de.html?dram:article_id=402022|archive-date=2018-02-04|language=de|trans-title=Inhumane Heavy Metal}}
Albums
- 2017 - Party Machine
Members
- Mega-Wattson - Lead singer; voiced by John Wright. It was built in 2017.
- Fingers - Lead guitarist; It is equipped with two hands, with a total of 78 fingers. It was built in 2009.{{Cite press release|title=Berlin Robotband plays with real instruments live Heavy Metal & Punk Rock|date=2015-10-20|url=http://compressorhead.rocks/press-kit/Compressorhead-Presskit-en.pdf|access-date=2019-10-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191014143245/http://compressorhead.rocks/press-kit/Compressorhead-Presskit-en.pdf|archive-date=2019-10-14|url-status=live}}
- Hellgå Tarr - Rhythm guitarist and backup singer; It was built in 2017.
- Bones - Bassist; It has two hands, each with four individual fingers, and is mounted on a platform equipped with caterpillar tracks that allows it to move around onstage. It was built in 2012.
- Stickboy - Drummer; It has four arms to which the sticks are secured, and two legs that play the kick drum. Its head has several metal protrusions that resemble a Mohawk hairstyle. It was built in 2007.
- Junior - An "assistant" to the drummer that operates the hi-hat cymbal; It was built in 2007.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.robocross-machines.com/ Official Website (robocross-machines.com)]
- [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0YxDJBJTMGQE8e2uzg7Ctw Compressorhead Youtube Channel]
{{Authority control}}
Category:Musical groups established in 2013