Paul Robb

Last updated
Paul Jason Robb
Paul Robb.png
Paul Robb performing live in 2012
Born1963
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Occupation(s)Synthesizer player, producer, songwriter
Website http://paulrobb.com/

Paul Jason Robb is an American synthesizer player, producer, songwriter and one of the founding members of the band Information Society. [1]

Contents

Biography

Robb was a member of Information Society from its inception in the early 1980s until 1992 (after its third release Peace and Love, Inc. ).

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 . [2] 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. In 2014 Kurt rejoined the band full time and the album Hello World was released being the first studio album featuring the lineup of Harland, Robb and Cassidy since 1992.

Hakatak

Hakatak
Founded1995 (1995)
FounderPaul Robb
Genre Electronic
Country of originU.S.
Official website www.hakatak.com

Hakatak International is an American independent record label founded by Robb. It specializes in electronic music acts.

Roster

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Running (Information Society song)</span> 1985 single by Information Society

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<i>The InSoc EP</i> 1983 EP by Information Society

The InSoc EP is an EP by the synthpop band Information Society. It was their first record.

<i>Creatures of Influence</i> 1984 studio album by Information Society

Creatures of Influence is an independent album by the synthpop band Information Society. The album was temporarily made available for free listening on the band's website; it was removed in preparation for the re-release in the Apocryphon compilation.

<i>Information Society</i> (album) 1988 studio album by Information Society

Information Society is the debut studio album by American synth-pop band Information Society, released on June 21, 1988, by Tommy Boy Records and Reprise Records. It was the band's first release under a major label, after two independently released extended plays. The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on December 6, 1988, denoting shipments in excess of 500,000 copies in the United States. Four singles were released from the album, including "What's on Your Mind ", the group's most commercially successful single to date. It was one of the only albums released in the seldom-used CD+G format.

<i>Pure Energy</i> (Information Society album) 2004 compilation album by Information Society

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<i>Oscillator</i> (EP) 2007 EP by Information Society

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<i>Synthesizer</i> (album) 2007 studio album by Information Society

Synthesizer is an album by the synthpop band Information Society. It was released on September 1, 2007, from the band's official website, and on October 9, 2007, in record stores.

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<i>Hello World</i> (Information Society album) 2014 studio album by Information Society

Hello World is an album by American synthpop/freestyle band Information Society. It is a return to the band's "classic" 1980s lineup.

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References

  1. "Multiple Personalty". Sound on Sound. March 1999. Retrieved 31 July 2010.
  2. Farinella, David John (March 1, 1999). "Composer Profile: Paul Robb". Mix Magazine. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 31 July 2010.