Sleepwalk A Robot

"Good guitar work courtesy of Justin Barker is rarely upstaged...Lead singer Travis Pack has one of those pop-rock 'emo' voices, but he doesn't overdo it - think Gin Blossoms when they were good."

- C. Murphy Herbert

(from album review of Kingfish Fiasco, Pack and Barker's previous band, published July 2006)

- Phoenix New Times

The Arizonian duo of Sleepwalk, A Robot are surprising and quite original in their work. In 2008 they released the excellent “Love in the Time of Global Warming” and I’ve been privileged to see them perform their magic in a live setting too. These guys have skills.

It is now 2010 and conveniently the duo releases “The 2010 EP”. It’s a free digital EP which you can download through the band’s Bandcamp page. Sleepwalk combines catchy, fast-paced pop with a more electronic/indie sound. And it all fits together perfectly. The strong pop hooks, the catchy rhythms, the clever effects and the smooth vocals come together in a somewhat quirky but qualitatively strong musical body.

A Hired Gun is fast-paced and has a lot of energy. It’s a song that will make you speed up when you listen to it in the car and it’s a song that gives you energy on a slow day. Buildings is a little more midtempo but the melody is no less effective. Once you hear it twice it is impossible to get out of your head. Sleepwalk is subtly taking control of what’s playing in your head, and frankly, that’s just impressive.

The final song on the EP, The World Is Made Of Pixels, is somewhat a parody of 1985 originally by SR-71 but made popular by Bowling For Soup’s version. It’s not like they just took the song and parodized it, or that they took the original song and sampled it. But parts of it are used in a playful, yet very clever way and incorporated in The World is.. And the combination of an already catchy rock song and a steady, catchy beat of their own, make this song utterly infectious.

There are only 3 songs on this digital EP, but even in those three songs there is plenty to enjoy. It’s just a teaser, I know, but if this doesn’t make you want to buy “Love in the Time of Global Warming” or anything else the duo comes up with, then I just don’t know. It’s fun, it’s good, and it’s real. Sleepwalk, A Robot is a hidden gem in the world of alternative pop music but if they keep at it, the whole world will hear of them pretty soon. - Inner Ear Media

"Justin Barker and Travis Pack, the essential components of local band Sleepwalk, a Robot, let their... antics run free. The fun of their friendship... fuels the chemistry inherent to their melodic compositions, even when the subject matter veers toward serious ground."

- Jose Gonzales

(from the article "True Bromance: Rock Gangtas Pledge Undying Dude Love," published April 2008) - Phoenix New Times

"Innovative pop, it's incredibly fun and addictive. Lingering melodies you find yourself humming under your breath for days. Within that electronic shell you can find the most beautiful acoustic rhythms."

-2mara, AZolverload.com
- AZoverload.com

"Pack and fellow singer/songwriter/guitarist Justin Barker don’t need a drummer to flesh out Sleepwalk, A Robot’s gorgeously melodic, hook-laden power-pop compositions."

- Chris Hansen Orf

(from the article, "Why Sleepwalk, a Robot will Never Hire a Drummer." published March 2008) - Get Out Magazine

"Sleepwalk, A Robot is redefining the indie/rock genre with their remarkable ability to mix pop-electronic hooks with soulful lyrics resulting in an experimental type of music that is complex and interesting. However, what gives Sleepwalk their edge is that the music is packaged in a way that is fun for the audience to listen to and the lyrics are relatable.
The EP is comparable to the intricacies of the Postal Service with HelloGoodbye-esque catchiness that you do not mind when it is stuck in your head."

- Kim Milbrandt

(from the article "Sleepwalk, a Robot," published October 2007)

- Copperstate Music Magazine

"5 years and 3 bands later, Travis Pack and Justin Barker have finally found something that works for them both musically and personally—their current project, electronic/pop outfit Sleepwalk, a Robot....

The band's unique package caught the eye of local indie label Sound Tree Records head Jayk Grittman. Grittman found the band on MySpace, and after checking them out live, he said their sound was so interesting and new that he wanted to pursue signing them.

'Because of the amount of crowd involvement Sleepwalk has, you won't even notice they don't have a drummer,' Grittman, 21, said. 'You hear so many songs that are about breakups and that are depressing. It's nice to get a fill of songs that are just upbeat.'"

- Nicki Escudero

(from the article "So Happy Together," published May 2008)

- amp.az

"The music is done to perfection yet the emotion is anything but robotic. Sleepwalk a Robot give you pop music without any shame to listen to it. With the powers of honesty and pop combined they are Captain Planet."

- David Owens (Mourning Maxwell, Neba)

- N/A

Sleepwalk, A Robot "Love In The Time Of Global Warming":

A sweetly surprising emotronica album in the Metro Station / Hellogoodbye vein.

(from www.twitter.com/albumaday) - AlbumADay - Twitter Feed

"Finally I’ve got some free time after the toughest exam and through this week I’ve got this lovely album to accompany my studying-hard times. Sleepwalk, a Robot’s Love in the Time of Global Warming brings upon some lovable powerpop tunes with a sleek combination of lighthearted acoustic guitar and fancy synth...good to listen to when your head is full of chemistry formulas. Watch out, the songs’ infectious choruses might get stuck in your head for days!"

- Kevin Aditya

(from blog "Treasure of the Week 2009.04.09" on monoplane.com) - I'm Safer on a Monoplane