HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Ryland Louis Bouchard (born October 16, 1979) is an American vocalist, musician, and cinematographer. As a musician he has incorporated aspects of folk, electronica, jazz, psychedelia and avant-garde rock. Previously known as the
Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in February 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but it was orig ...
recording artist The Robot Ate Me, he has been labeled by
Daytrotter Daytrotter was a recording studio, music venue and subscription-based music discovery website located in Atlanta, United States. It hosted recording sessions with indie music acts. The original studio in Rock Island, Illinois, was founded in 20 ...
as "One of the most creative and potentially scary minds of our generation" and by
Spin Magazine ''Spin'' (stylized in all caps as ''SPIN'') is an American music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr. Now owned by Next Management Partners, the magazine is an online publication since it stopped issuing a print edition in 2012. ...
as "purely artistic, baffling, and almost completely uncommercial".


Biography

Bouchard was born on October 16, 1979, in Los Angeles, California.


The Robot Ate Me

In 2002 he released '' They Ate Themselves'', his first record as The Robot Ate Me and played his first shows in San Diego opening for notable touring acts such as
Daniel Johnston Daniel Dale Johnston (January 22, 1961 – September 11, 2019) was an American singer, musician and artist regarded as a significant figure in Outsider music, outsider, Lo-fi music, lo-fi, and alternative rock, alternative music scenes. Most ...
,
Tegan and Sara Tegan and Sara () are a Canadian indie pop duo formed in 1998 in Calgary, Alberta. The band is led by identical twin sisters, Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Keirsten Quin (born September 19, 1980). Both musicians are songwriters and multi-instrumentali ...
,
Metric Metric or metrical may refer to: Measuring * Metric system, an internationally adopted decimal system of measurement * An adjective indicating relation to measurement in general, or a noun describing a specific type of measurement Mathematics ...
,
Stars A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by self-gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night; their immense distances from Earth make them appear as fixed points of ...
and The Blackheart Procession. ''
Skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Most modern sources define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition, other than being very tall high-rise bui ...
'' magazine described his first release as "Quite possibly the year's most arresting experimental pop record, They Ate Themselves is a dizzyingly vibrant trip through death and multi-layered dissonance". The controversial and highly experimental '' On Vacation'' was released in 2004 in which Adam Gnade declared "It's not even music outside the margins. Here the margins were never there, and if they were to encroach, The Robot Ate Me would probably up and croak."
Punk Planet ''Punk Planet'' was a 16,000 print run punk zine, based in Chicago, Illinois, that focused most of its energy on looking at punk subculture rather than punk as simply another genre of music to which teenagers listen. In addition to covering m ...
followed suit describing the album as "A hypnotic two-disc record that will score your twisted nightmares and fanciful dreams." Splendid summarized "It is impossible to understand a Robot Ate Me album from a written description." After the release of ''On Vacation'' in 2004, he signed with
Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in February 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but it was orig ...
and toured the US heavily the next few years playing close to 600 shows in the following three years. His shows relied heavily on audience participation and were known for being fairly unpredictable. As part of his shows he would sometimes be dragged across the floor by attendees, wear masks, scream loudly, have the audience play the supporting instruments for his songs without rehearsal, or abruptly leave after playing one song. The 2005 release of '' Carousel Waltz'' brought a set of minimal American folk songs. The album was lauded by Babysue as a "strangely compelling and uplifting vision of how love affects a person. Soft and focused, these unusual tunes are simultaneously accessible and peculiar. The Robot Ate Me remains one of the most unique acts on the planet. Brimming with credible substance, Carousel Waltz is yet another killer album from an artist who just keeps getting better and better with time..." ''Good World'' was released in 2006. The avant-garde album primarily consisted of sparse clarinet lines mixed with minimal percussion and falsetto vocals by Bouchard.
Pitchforkmedia ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres including pop, hip-hop, ...
asked "Has someone bludgeoned frontman Ryland Bouchard?". And Tinymixtapes declared: "Not since the glory days of punk has an album come and gone so fast and left one with more questions than answers."


Solo work

In 2008, Bouchard released ''Seeds'' a hand-crafted limited edition box set with close to two hours of music (divided between an A-Sides CD/vinyl and a B-Sides CD), a DVD of Super 8 videos, four 7" vinyl records, letter-pressed lyrics, a hand silk-screened shirt, bag, poster, and a set of illustrations by his longtime collaborator Daniel Gibson. Only 500 copies of the set were made. In early 2009, Bouchard completed a Take-Away Show video session for La Blogothèque where he performed songs from
Seeds In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds are the ...
. The 2009 double vinyl release ''Cowbirds and Cuckoos'' was released on November 15, 2009, by Swim Slowly Records. The release consists of two hand screen-printed records and photography by Ryland Bouchard. In February 2010, Swim Slowly Records released a digital EP "Better This Than Nothing", a collection of B-Sides from "Cowbirds and Cuckoos".


Film

With the release of "Seeds" in 2008 Bouchard also included a DVD worth of videos shot exclusively on Super 8 film. In 2009, he also released a series of Super 8 videos for the "Cowbirds and Cuckoos" release on YouTube. Using mostly a Braun Nizo S580 and Kodak Ektachrome 64T film, the videos include footage from various locations throughout Europe, Mexico and the United States. Completed without digital effects the films rely heavily on time lapse, slow motion and other experimental filmmaking techniques. On Aug 31, 2011, the Portland Mercury reported that
Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...
used Super 8 footage from Bouchard's "Good Life #2" for the original Video Games (song) music video. On May 13, 2022, Bouchard shared stills for 16mm film footage contributed to "Scarlet" a film by
Pietro Marcello Pietro Marcello (born 2 July 1976) is an Italian film director. He has directed more than ten documentary and feature films since 2004. Several of his films have been presented at international film festivals and have received various awards and n ...
. On May 29, 2023, Bouchard announced work on a "non-narrative nature documentary on 16mm/35mm film."


Discography


Albums/EPs

* '' They Ate Themselves'' ( Swim Slowly, 2002) as The Robot Ate Me * '' Live at the CBC'' ( Swim Slowly, 2003) as The Robot Ate Me * '' On Vacation'' ( Swim Slowly, 2004) as The Robot Ate Me * '' On Vacation'' ( 5 Rue Christine, 2005, Reissue) as The Robot Ate Me * '' Carousel Waltz'' ( 5 Rue Christine, 2005) as The Robot Ate Me * '' Good World'' ( 5 Rue Christine, 2006) as The Robot Ate Me * ''Seeds'' Box Set ( Swim Slowly, 2008) * '' Cowbirds and Cuckoos'' ( Swim Slowly, 2009) * '' Better This Than Nothing'' ( Swim Slowly, 2010) * '' Only You'' ( Swim Slowly, 2012) * '' Hope Rides Alone'' ( Swim Slowly, 2012) * '' Bridge By Bridge'' ( Swim Slowly, 2013) as The Robot Ate Me * '' Circumstance'' ( Swim Slowly, 2013) as The Robot Ate Me * '' Whalers'' ( Swim Slowly, 2017)


Compilation appearances

* ''Translation. Music. 3'', Substandard (2003) – "Plane" * ''Yeti 3'', Yeti (2005) – "We Were Humans" * ''Sur La Mer Samp Le Mer'', 5RC / Kill Rock Stars (2006) – "Lynching Luncheon" * ''Winter Holiday Album'', 5RC / Kill Rock Stars (2006) – "Wonderland" * ''ESOPUS 15'', ESOPUS (2010) – "Hope Rides Alone"


Band members

*Ryland Bouchard


Past members and contributors

* Kevin Michael Mayfield (Guitar, Vocals, Harmonica, Slide Guitar) * Alan Lechusza (woodwinds and orchestral arrangements on ''Carousel Waltz'' and ''Seeds'') *Daniel Gibson (completed the artwork for all the albums) * Jay Arner (Drums) * Evan Kuhlmann (Contrabassoon) *David Greenberg (drums) *Are-Jay Hoffman (bass/violin) *William Haworth (drums, horns, synthesizers) *Edan Rosenberg (helped write lyrics for ''Carousel Waltz'')


References


External links

*
Ryland Bouchard
at MySpace
The Robot Ate Me
at
Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in February 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but it was orig ...
* The Robot Ate Meat
Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

Swim Slowly Records
– Label owned by Bouchard {{DEFAULTSORT:Bouchard, Ryland 1979 births American male singer-songwriters Living people American tenors University of California, San Diego alumni Musicians from Los Angeles Singer-songwriters from California 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singer-songwriters