"Free-floating musical explorers"
- Hannah Peel, BBC Radio 3
"A signature sound of jazz-motivated, punk-informed spoken word"
- Loud & Quiet
"A band who can both write a killer hook and slap you hard in your chest cavity."
- Line Of Best Fit
Experimentation is at the core of Robocobra Quartet, whether it
be in the fluid line-up (six musicians tagging in and out to make up the live
touring quartet) or in their unique self-produced records made in their
hometown of Belfast, Northern Ireland.
These juxtapositions are just the beginning of the complex world of Robocobra Quartet - a
band serious about their music but humorous in their approach, including members with no
musical training alongside members with music conservatoire pedigree. The result is a
collective of musicians inspired by Stravinsky and Dead Kennedys in equal measures.
On stage, the band are protons and electrons circling drummer-vocalist Chris W Ryan;
meticulous arrangements and on-the-spot improvisations hang on every word spoken,
sung and shouted by Ryan. These words and rhythms are what propel the music of Robocobra Quartet forward and concoct a sound that is groove-driven but cerebral too, invoking the likes of Fugazi, Talking Heads and contemporaries such as Black Midi, Squid and BadBadNotGood.
The free nature of the band's live shows led to them being embraced early on by jazz fanatics just as much as rock fans - once finding themselves in Europe touring a jazz
club one night, a house show the next and a pop festival the night after that. These
unmatched live performances often channel-hop from moments of joy and playfulness to
periods of intense fury, earning the band invitations to Montreux Jazz Festival, Glastonbury and as far as Inversia Festival in the arctic circle whilst receiving acclaim
from the likes of The Quietus, MOJO, BBC 6Music and KEXP.
At the time of writing Robocobra Quartet swaps between:
Chris W Ryan (Drums, Voice)
Nathan Rodgers (Bass)
Ryan Burrowes (Bass, Sampler, Keys)
Tom Tabori (Soprano Sax, Sampler, Keys)
Peter Howard (Tenor Sax, Alto Sax)
Thibault Barillon (Tenor Sax)