Compressorhead isn’t your average metal band. That’s because its members consist of 5-foot-tall robots built out of scrap metal and controlled by electro pneumatics.
The band members include Stickboy on drums, Bones on bass, and Fingers on the guitar. Fingers even seems to have the headbanging action down pat. They’re also currently working on a robot for lead vocals.
Compressorhead isn’t new, they’ve actually been around for a while now, but they’re the first robot rock band built independent of any institutional or industrial funding. Now they’re trying to become the first robot band to record an original album. But, as Compressorhead says on its website, most record labels aren’t interested in funding the creation of robots or an album created by robots.
So Compressorhead will be turning to you for help by launching a crowdfunding campaign on Nov. 1. Compressorhead’s version of the Motorhead classic “Ace of Spades” has been viewed nearly 7 million times on YouTube. They have also covered AC/DC’s “TNT” and Pantera’s “Becoming.”
The songs on their album, however, will be original. They’re being written by John Wright, a musician best known as the drummer, keyboardist, occasional vocalist and co-songwriter in the progressive punk rock/punk jazz band NoMeansNo, as well as the lead singer and co-songwriter of the pop-punk group The Hanson Brothers.
They have a good head-start with Wright on their side, but the robots themselves are pretty amazing. Check out the video above of Compressorhead practicing its new song “Speed Walking Lady” where both Wright and Stickboy are on the drums. All the instruments are being played live, with the vocals running off playback.
This just might be the most epic drum-off of all time.
