Paul Robb
Encyclopedia
Paul Jason Robb is a synthesizer player, producer, songwriter and one of the founding members of the synthpop
-freestyle
band Information Society
.
).
When Information Society's contract with Tommy Boy
/Reprise
/Warner Bros. Records
ended, Paul (who at the time had a new infant) chose to work in films and commercials, winning two Clio Awards
for BMW
ads in the process. In 1996, he started a record company called Hakatak International
. Hakatak featured his one-man industrial-tinged band Think Tank, as well as a trip-hop- and world music
-flavored collaboration with Minneapolis folk singer Barbara Cohen named Brother Sun Sister Moon.
When trip-hop briefly gained mainstream popularity following the release of Portishead's Dummy
, Brother Sun Sister Moon recorded for Virgin Records
, causing the temporary dissolution of Hakatak in June 1997. No album ever resulted from that deal, however, and to this day neither Robb nor Virgin will say what happened.
Robb continued to do TV, film, and commercial work but had no further commercially recorded output until January 2002, when he reappeared with a new record company named Bleep! Records and an album under the name of Luminous, which turned out to be a renamed Brother Sun Sister Moon. The Bleep! Web site promised a new Robb solo album under the name Bitcrusher, but that album was not released before Robb's investors pulled the plug and killed Bleep! in late 2002.
Robb owns a recording studio in Los Angeles
called Digitalis (a pun on the heart drug) and continues to produce music for advertisements and television shows. His credits include MTV
's The Real World
and Road Rules
and the score for Trey Parker
and Matt Stone
's first movie Orgazmo
. He later remixed the theme for Parker and Stone's long-running South Park
series and was involved in the Chef Aid
album as well.
It was announced in 2006 that Robb and James Cassidy would reform Information Society
with a new vocalist, Chris Anton. Original vocalist Kurt Harland
opted out, citing work and family obligations for a time, but resumed his role as lead singer in 2008. In 2007, the band released an EP
, Oscillator
, and a new album, Synthesizer
, under the resurrected Hakatak label.
Synthpop
Synthpop is a genre of popular music that first became prominent in the 1980s, in which the synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock, electronic art rock, disco and particularly the "Kraut rock" of...
-freestyle
Freestyle music
Freestyle or Latin freestyle, sometimes referred to as Latin hip hop, is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in the early 1980s. Mostly popular during the mid 80s to the early 90s...
band Information Society
Information Society (band)
Information Society is an American band originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, primarily consisting of Kurt Larson , Paul Robb, and James Cassidy; the latter two reconvened the band in 2006, initially with Christopher Anton as lead vocalist, then with Harland rejoining them as lead vocalist by...
.
Biography
Robb was in the band from its inception in the early 1980s until 1992 (after its third release Peace and Love, Inc.Peace and Love, Inc.
Peace and Love, Inc. is an album by synth-pop band Information Society. The album got great critical reviews but the label did little to promote it. Peace and Love, Inc was the least successful of the 3 albums released under Tommy Boy/Reprise and was the last Tommy Boy title to be distributed by...
).
When Information Society's contract with Tommy Boy
Tommy Boy Records
Tommy Boy Entertainment is an independent record label started in 1981 by Tom Silverman.-History:...
/Reprise
Reprise Records
Reprise Records is an American record label, founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operated through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:...
/Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
ended, Paul (who at the time had a new infant) chose to work in films and commercials, winning two Clio Awards
Clio Awards
The Clio Awards are annual awards bestowed to reward innovation and creative excellence in advertising, design and communication. The categories include work in nearly all types of media, and the judges are advertising professionals from around the world....
for BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
ads in the process. In 1996, he started a record company called Hakatak International
Hakatak
Hakatak International is an American independent record label founded by Paul Robb. It is specialized in electronic music acts.-Artists:* Brother Sun Sister Moon* Dissonance* Information Society* Metrognome:Falcotronik* Think Tank-External links:* *...
. Hakatak featured his one-man industrial-tinged band Think Tank, as well as a trip-hop- and world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
-flavored collaboration with Minneapolis folk singer Barbara Cohen named Brother Sun Sister Moon.
When trip-hop briefly gained mainstream popularity following the release of Portishead's Dummy
Dummy (album)
Dummy is the debut album of the Bristol-based group Portishead. Released in October 22, 1994 on Go! Discs, the album earned critical acclaim, winning the 1995 Mercury Music Prize. It is often credited with popularizing the trip-hop genre and is frequently cited in lists of the best albums of the...
, Brother Sun Sister Moon recorded for Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
, causing the temporary dissolution of Hakatak in June 1997. No album ever resulted from that deal, however, and to this day neither Robb nor Virgin will say what happened.
Robb continued to do TV, film, and commercial work but had no further commercially recorded output until January 2002, when he reappeared with a new record company named Bleep! Records and an album under the name of Luminous, which turned out to be a renamed Brother Sun Sister Moon. The Bleep! Web site promised a new Robb solo album under the name Bitcrusher, but that album was not released before Robb's investors pulled the plug and killed Bleep! in late 2002.
Robb owns a recording studio in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
called Digitalis (a pun on the heart drug) and continues to produce music for advertisements and television shows. His credits include MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's The Real World
The Real World
The Real World is a reality television program on MTV originally produced by Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray. First broadcast in 1992, the show, which was inspired by the 1973 PBS documentary series An American Family, is the longest-running program in MTV history and one of the...
and Road Rules
Road Rules
Road Rules was an MTV reality show that debuted on July 19, 1995. The series, which was MTV's second reality show after The Real World followed six strangers between the ages of 18 and 24 after stripping them of their money and putting them on an RV traveling from location to location only guided...
and the score for Trey Parker
Trey Parker
Trey Parker is an American animator, screenwriter, director, producer, voice artist, musician and actor, best known for being the co-creator of the television series South Park along with his creative partner and best friend Matt Stone.Parker started his film career in 1992, making a holiday short...
and Matt Stone
Matt Stone
Matthew Richard "Matt" Stone is an American screenwriter, producer, voice artist, musician and actor, best known for being the co-creator of South Park along with creative partner and best friend, Trey Parker....
's first movie Orgazmo
Orgazmo
Orgazmo is a 1997 comedy film written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of the animated series South Park, and directed by Parker.-Plot:...
. He later remixed the theme for Parker and Stone's long-running South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
series and was involved in the Chef Aid
Chef Aid
"Chef Aid" is the fourteenth episode of the second season of the animated television series South Park, 27th episode of the series overall. "Chef Aid" originally aired in the United States on October 7, 1998 on Comedy Central...
album as well.
It was announced in 2006 that Robb and James Cassidy would reform Information Society
Information Society (band)
Information Society is an American band originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, primarily consisting of Kurt Larson , Paul Robb, and James Cassidy; the latter two reconvened the band in 2006, initially with Christopher Anton as lead vocalist, then with Harland rejoining them as lead vocalist by...
with a new vocalist, Chris Anton. Original vocalist Kurt Harland
Kurt Harland
Kurt Harland is a singer, composer, and video game developer/audio engineer. He is best known as the lead singer of Information Society and composer of the soundtracks for the Legacy of Kain video game series.-Biography:...
opted out, citing work and family obligations for a time, but resumed his role as lead singer in 2008. In 2007, the band released an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, Oscillator
Oscillator (EP)
Oscillator is an EP by Information Society. It was their first new commercial release after a six year hiatus.This six-song record features the vocal stylings of newcomer Christopher Anton, as well as a range of intriguing guests and remixers...
, and a new album, Synthesizer
Synthesizer (album)
Synthesizer is an album by synthpop band Information Society. It was released on September 1, 2007 from the Official Website, and was released on October 9, 2007 in record stores.-Track listing:# Baby Just Wants# Back In The Day...
, under the resurrected Hakatak label.
External links
- PaulRobb.com, with examples of his TV commercial work
- Hakatak International
- 2009: Soundtracks by Information Society - interview with Paul Robb, plus 2-tracks for listening to.
- 2008: March 2008 interview in Santa Monica MirrorSanta Monica MirrorThe Santa Monica Mirror is a weekly community newspaper which covers Santa Monica, Brentwood, Pacific Palisades, Venice, and Marina del Rey in the U.S. state of California. It circulates around 22,000 subscriptions weekly. The Mirror focuses on local happenings, events, sports, and arts...
- 2007: November 2007 interview on About.comAbout.comAbout.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....
" - 2007: March 2007 Plaza of the Mind, an interview with Paul Robb by Kurt Weller
- 2006 2006 podcast interview on morons.org about the resurrection of Information Society and Paul's affinity for Nilla Wafers
- 1999: March 1999 interview in Mix Magazine
- 1999: March 1999 interview in Sound On SoundSound on SoundSound on Sound is an independently-owned monthly music technology magazine published by SOS Publications Group, based in Cambridge, UK. The magazine includes product tests of electronic musical performance and recording devices, and interviews with industry professionals...
magazine