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That little “influences” box on a musician’s MySpace page is usually a repository for not-funny irony or complete bullshit. Shit Robot’s, however, is as sincere and accurate as this single-man-act’s name is not — name-checked here are early electronic heavyweights like Carl Craig, Andrew Weatherall, Derrick May, and Juan Atkins.
And although Shit Robot is signed to DFA, a New York label that’s hipster-approved and attracts a lot of bored rock kids, his techno lineage is more sonically apparent than those of the minimal purists boring themselves into silence.
A Shit Robot track (how many times can we repeat “Shit Robot” in this piece?) is straight-up funky, built on stuttering 808s and “Tour de France”-era Kraftwerk-style synths. And yes, there’s a classic ’90s, raw kind of vibe to the tracks too. Makes sense, since Mr. Robot, whose real name is Marcus Lambkin, cut his teeth playing real-deal legendary NYC spots like Save the Robots, and later Plant Bar. If at time the music can sound a little willfully retro, well, it works as a salve. If you find yourself pining for a time when techno still equalled soul, well, then, a robot called Shit may be the cure for what ails you.
Shit Robot plays The Vagabond (30 NE 14th St., Miami) Friday, October 16. Doors open at 10 p.m. Admission is free before 11 p.m., $5 after. Ages 21+ with ID. 305-379-0508; thevagabondmiami.com.
