The Robot Ate Me
WL 359 - Sunday, April 15 – 12am
Purveyor of: punk-folk

Ryland Bouchard, aka The Robot At Me, creates albums that are like little gems with a core of folk that reaches into experimental, minimalist pop, and with a voice that can be downright heartbreaking. He also lives in Portland now, adding to the Mecca status of an already great city. Seriously, what is it about Portland? Ryan McLaren and Bouchard chatted over email.

So what've you been up to? Last time I saw you was at that Vatikan show in 2005 where you were playing with the worlds smokiest smoke machine.

Did that show even happen? That night is a blur to me. I vaguely remember something out of the set of Interview with the Vampire.

Are you still in Washington?

Nope, I've moved a bit south to Portland, OR.

The newest album has been getting really good and really bizarre reviews. I was kinda surprised when I first heard it because it harkens back to the less poppier, more experimental side of the Vacation double album. After Carousel Waltz, I thought you would've taken more of a lush-pop route. Did you intentionally set out to take this album in a different direction?

I have never really intentionally set out to achieve anything with the albums I've worked on - they just sort of happened. When I started Good World it seemed like a logical progression from the other albums I'd worked on in the past. I've never really been interested in trying to repeat myself and love inventing new sounds. I think the difficulty of Good World lies more in the listeners expectations of the music to sound a certain way and less on the content itself.

Are you a Gemini?

No.

So what are you working on these days, any new material? New album?

I’m hoping to record a new record when I return home... Hopefully for release next fall/spring.

And hey, your country voted in Bush for a second term. So how are you feeling these days? I keep looking at www.crooksandliars.com and shaking my head. Are you following the whole way-too-early Democrat leadership thing?

I can't follow politics right now. For a day I read the NY Times and there was a story about a new plan to make "Wash N' Fight" uniforms. Something about velcro being more efficient, and the new material being wrinkle free. I guess the idea being that if you look good, you fight good. Makes complete sense to me.

Last time you played Wavelength you were joking about writing "TERRORIST" on your van. I was thinking of that when I saw this: www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUhxOFZ8Pj0 on an episode of Robot Chicken a little while ago. How are things looking from your perspective?

It’s a beautiful day here in Portland. Spring finally showed up and all the trees are in bloom. I’m sure terrorism is more of a threat everyday we stay involved in this war. You can either dwell on the problems created by the current administration or try to live your life in a way that will hopefully affect people in a meaningful and positive way. Before our country is going to get better, it’ll need to get a lot worse. Maybe then people will crave leadership from someone genuinely interested in making this country/world a better place to live, maybe not.

Have you ever gotten any flak from an audience for your more political songs?

Yes - but it's always been from "liberals" questioning my sensitivity to the issues. Either Republicans don't come to my shows or they actually have a sense of humour about how absurd politics has become.

Do you like being on the road? I mean, this tour is called the "No Fun Tour", right? Do ever feel like you just want to stay put and not go anywhere for a while?

This last year I didn't play any music at all. I stayed home and refused to play shows or pick up an instrument. I listened to music when I had to but really tried to avoid everything related to the music scene. On some level I think it's necessary to purge yourself of the things you love in order to continue to enjoy them. It's like sweets. As much as you love them - they are only good in little bits. The last few weeks I've started playing music again and it's a great feeling - I'm actually really looking forward to
writing new material on tour and recording when I get home.

Do you feel pretty connected to the rest of the country from touring so much? I mean, I know playing a date every night doesn't exactly lend itself to really exploring a town, but you must get some opportunities to hang out with the locals, right?

Before I began touring like crazy I had this expectation that places would be different. They aren't. Venues differ more within a city than the cities themselves. The people in big cities talk a bit different but are surrounded by all the same influences. Of course there are exceptions and surprises but less than you would expect.

What pearls of wisdom have you learned in the last few years?

I wouldn’t ever presume to be wise. But thank you!

By Ryan McLaren