roboteyes

Peterborough synth-pop trio roboteyes are back with True Love In Modern Stereo, their second EP, showing a slick pop veneer (courtesy producer Devon Lougheed of Beekeeper), a flair for the dramatic, a love of 1980s synth, and the desire to make you dance.

The second track on True Love, “Coattails,” starts unassumingly enough. A playful bass line bobs along and vocalist Kate LeDeuce is at her most wholesome all-American girl-next-door as she leads us down the garden path, telling us she’s “gonna make that thing you like.”

Then, the chorus comes in. The black-and-white farmhouse door swings wide open, and the technicolor Land of Oz unfurls before us, in overblown emotions, multilayered retro synth, wailing guitar, punctuated drum machine handclaps, and even tubular bells, for god’s sake! “So put your coattails on,” LeDeuce belts out, suddenly unveiled in all her untethered diva glory. “We got a lot of work to do!”

Is she singing about getting glammed up for a night on the town? About getting psyched for a presumably stadium-sized roboteyes show? About heading into battle against the forces of evil? In the hypersaturated world of roboteyes, maybe it’s all the same.

It’s a world the band has spent the better part of three years carefully crafting, with a series of lineup changes (ultimately honing in on the lean, focused trio of LeDeuce, Ryan Ford, and Matt Servo), an excellent self-produced first EP (our review), and a series of sweaty, buzzworthy concerts around Peterborough and Toronto.

Now, with True Love In Modern Stereo, roboteyes are shoving their way to the front of the line and asserting with utter confidence their place as one of the most exciting bands on the local scene, and beyond.

In just five tracks (four of which come in at a radio-ideal 3:50 plus or minus 10 seconds), roboteyes stretch themselves further musically and vocally than ever before.

It starts with “In Flames,” a pulsing club track with a hynotic throb and rich layers of retro-styled synth. After that, the previously mentioned “Coattails” tears the roof off, and “Call My Name” (the lead single, which first premiered right here on ECL) holds on tight. It’s a gloriously fun slice of 80s pop candy, ideal for a legwarmered workout or a shopping-mall montage in a cheesy rom-com.

After that, the album takes a turn for the wistful in its back half. “Watching And Waiting” is the band at its most darkly melodramatic, with moody synths and melancholy lyrics. And then there’s the minimalist closer, “Change For Me,” which is perhaps the closest the album has to a weak point. As a showcase for LeDeuce’s raw vocals, it’s quite beautiful, but as a song, it never really seems to go anywhere.

Regardless, this is an album of truly impressive ambition: in its complex, layered instrumentation, in its clean, professional polish, and in the dizzying heights of its emotions. But perhaps most obvious is the ambition of the band themselves. Aside from being a hell of a lot of fun, True Love is tailor-made to be broadcast wide and pumped out loud, with its catchy, dancey, accessible pop tracks. It’s an album that imagines itself rocketing into the stratosphere and exploding bright across the night sky – and it may just do that. - Electric City Live

It’s the blog’s first review of 2015 and we’re apparently setting the year’s tone with some music that should inspire many a dance move. Peterborough’s roboteyes have taken a little time off between this new EP and their last, and there’s a noticeable difference between the two.

On True Love in Modern Stereo, the band makes no attempts at pretension. These are just honest-to-goodness, synth-infused pop songs. Katie LeDeuce is who you’ll hear front and centre on vocals, but Ryan Ford (guitars) and Matt Servo (synths) provide the backdrop that allows LeDeuce’s vocals to shine.

The most obvious influence on the band is the sound of the eighties. You can hear it in the slick production and futuristic sounds of the synthesizers. Perhaps nowhere is this influence more apparent than in “Call My Name,” a song that first sounds so much like a Police song that the opening lyric that begins with “Sending out” will instantly make listeners fill in the blank with “an SOS.” But it’s not a Police song, and it features some big, proud vocals and synths that make for an earworm.

The EP starts out, however, with “In Flames,” which will immediately show fans that the band has gotten a lot slicker. The pulsing synthsizers and dollops of percussion make the song just straddle the line between well-produced and overcalculated, and it’s an interesting note to begin on.

The EP’s highlight comes next with “Coattails,” a song that toys with subtlety and brashness in equal measures. Rather than blast a synthesizer wave straight away, it brings in just some guitars and a more subdued tone. But as soon as LeDeuce comes in singing “So put your coattails on” the chorus explodes into something louder.

The EP takes a little left turn for the final two songs, “Waiting and Watching” and “Change For Me.” The latter is much slower in tempo, almost a ballad. The former features much darker-sounding synths to help better portray the anxiety LeDeuce sings about.

To find out if it’s really true love, give it a while. True Love in Modern Stereo will be out on January 6, 2015. - Grayowl Point

Discovering the synth rock tunes of roboteyes was the musical equivalent of seeing a hundred fireworks exploding in the night sky.

This three-piece band—made up of Kate LeDeuce, Ryan Ford, and Matt Servo—has created explosive, dramatic songs that bounce off of the walls with the liveliest bursts of energy.

Based in Peterborough, roboteyes has been together for three years. Their synthesized new-wave pop sounds echo a Devo sensibility, with a colourful splash of David Bowie.

The band wrote, recorded, and produced their self-titled EP entirely by themselves, shot a video for their popular song “You and Me,” have been featured on CBC Radio 1, and continue to play regularly on local stages downtown. - The Arthur

If you haven’t figured it out yet, I find the 80s revival way more interesting than the emo revival. roboteyes are a great example of why — their ebullient vocals and buoyant melodies carry every bit the emotional sway of their glummer counterparts, and even in their drollest moments, vocalists Kate LeDeuce and Ryan Ford sound emotionally engaged.The lovely melodies only add to the enjoyability. - Makeup for the Silence

The self-titled roboteyes EP once again proves that good songs, intelligently presented, are always a winning proposition, over and above the musical genre. - THE EQUAL GROUND

You probably couldn’t spend more than a minute using Twitter or Facebook this week without seeing a reference to something called Roboteyes.

...four-piece pop-rock band is all over social media, and deservedly so — this is modern, fresh music that draws from ’80s synth-pop but with a fresher, rougher guitar sound. It’s a bit like The Killers (yeah, that’s an easy comparison, sorry) but with stronger vocals.

The band is four familiar musicians: Kate LeDeuce on vocals, Ryan Ford on guitars and vocals, Matt Servo on synths and Marty Kerslake on bass.

Sample the sound (and buy the band’s new EP) at roboteyes.bandcamp.com. - The Peterborough Examiner

...roboteyes has just released their debut album. It has a distinct 80s new wave, synthpop sound that lands somewhere around the feel of early eighties British duo Yaz (aka Yazoo).

Their first single, "Break My Heart", could become a hit if it gets radio airplay.

Band members include Kate LeDeuce, vocals; Ryan Ford, guitar/vocals; Matt Servo, synthesis; and Marty Kerslake, bass.

Have a listen to the 4-track album or download it here.

The album was recorded, mixed and mastered at Das Bootleg Studios in Toronto.
- http://ptbocanada.com

"...roboteyes is an authentic, bouncy hit of ’80s new wave and synth pop." - Electric City Live