"Engaging indie tweetronica debut
With a whiff of 'performance art project' about them, Alice Hubley and Adam Cresswell dress like Enid Blyton characters and play self-consciously cute retro-indie with a Krautrock slant. Over a bubbling analogue backdrop of Moodg, Korgs, Stylophones and Theremins, the duo croom pulse-pop lullabies like the cut-price Kraftwerk homage "Autovia" or the shiny yet wistful "Follow The Path".."
Uncut 3/5

"The lyrics may be tender, amusing, sometimes just silly, but ultimately there is always a stonking tune that takes you away to a special place – somewhere filled with fragile and tenders things, but which you want to dance around."
Narc  4/5

"...it will take a Herculean will to not be won over by ‘Autovia’ and its smooth, caressing vocals.
...‘Kasparov’; Which bridges the gap between James Yuill and New Order, in both sound and quality stakes, with ease and is undoubtedly one of the high points this LP has to offer... 'Navigation' isn’t going to cross over and blow people out of the water, sell millions and be left on everybody’s shelf, but those who do grab a copy will more than likely feel pretty pleased with themselves and play it half to death."
This Is Fake DIY 7/10

"We’ll start by saying a gorgeous record and a gorgeous debut full length to boot....Found cruise controlling pop’s ever expanding cosmos patrolling star crossed hand holding twee tweaked avenues, there’s a beautifully becoming symmetry about Martha and Arthur’s craft as it sweetly transposes the spacey and optimistic future echoes of Krautrock’s more cosmic inclines with the silken synth pop sensibilities of the 80’s that embellishes it with a disturbingly affectionate tug that’s both immediate and familiar and most importantly acutely chilled and sophisticated..."
Losing Today

"The secret of being a successful artist is, in my opinion, being instantly recognisable. So that by the time a song has been playing for less than a minute the listener knows who it is. Having a sound that is immediately your own, irrespective of influences or frailties therein. I think Arthur and Martha have cracked it... Female-fronted electronica with an unashamed glance back to Eighties beepy purveyors like OMD, Visage and New Order."
Sounds XP

Navigation is out Monday 6th July 2009 from all good record shops and download places.

The EP is out today, with five tracks there's a lot to get stuck into and enjoy, you can download the EP from...

Itunes
Play.com
Amazon.com
Emusic

Or you can purchase the limited cd from the botshop

Will update the blog very soon with links to some of the nice reviews the band have been receiving.

Enjoy
The Happy Robots xx

Music For Hairproducts is out on 29th June, enjoy the video in the meantime...



6music's Nemone on Music For Hairproducts
Russell Reviews on Navigation

Arthur and Martha will be playing two special shows to support the album and single releases

27th June - Meat Raffle at Catch, 22 Kingsland Road, Shoreditch, London

22nd July - Supporting Still Flyin' at Camden Barfly, 49 Chalk Farm Road, London
Buy tickets now

More shows are to be confirmed for September.

Bot03 - Arthur and Martha - Music For Hairproducts EP
Digital Released 29th June 2009

Written on kiddies instruments, moogs and old-school drum machines, the innocent pop-sensibility of Arthur and Martha’s second single, ‘Music for Hair Products’, won’t fail to bring a smile in these times of economic doom and gloom. 

Preceding the debut album, ‘Navigation’, is the new single ‘Music for Hairproducts’.  Knowingly stupid, and archly clever; it’s an anthem for Head and Shoulders and hair-gel adverts worldwide.  We defy you not to sing it’s infectious ‘sha-la-la’ chorus next time you’re foaming yourself in the shower.

This EP also includes the reflective, melodica-driven ‘Dance Dance Dance’ and three remixes including one from Hood (Domino Records) offshoot band The Declining Winter. Arthur & Martha debut album ‘Navigation’ is out on Happy Robots on 29th June.

The single has already been played on the Gideon Coe and Nemone shows on BBC 6music and Nemone has featured the track in the Lunchbox section of her website, see more here.

Artrocker have called the single "all good being the earproduct of a generally cool pairing.  The title track is all mundance concerns, fake handclaps and futuristic grooves.  And said remix of Autovia is blooming marvellous".

Arthur & Martha’s debut single ‘Autovia’ received rave reviews from the likes of the NME and Artrocker and multiple Radio 1 plays from Huw Stephens. The band built on this success, gigging with the likes of Lo-Fi Fnk, Grovesnor, Plastic Operator, Sportsday Megaphone and others. The band are flattered to have been compared to Kraftwerk, Add N to X, Pet Shop Boys and Soft Cell.

Arthur and Martha will be playing Meat Raffle at Catch on the 27th June, further shows to be announced imminently.

Even the brightest Japanese scientist couldn’t make robots as happy as this release makes us. We hope this record will make you a very happy robot too!

Afternoon! Hope you are well and enjoying May, the robots enjoyed seeing the BBC Radiophonic Workshop at the weekend as well as the spectacular of Eurovision (we're still gutted that Ukraine didn't win!) and are looking off to jetting off on our jollys soon to soak up the sunshine! Fun times!

Happy Robots are pleased to announce the return of the Happy Robots Botcast (podcast for robots!).  We thought this time we'd ask our friends to contribute mixes so first up we have none other than Monster Bobby to start the proceedings.  In the coming months we'll also have mixes from Katsen, The Bridal Shop and Elika too.

Monster Bobby of course contributed an awesome track, 'Say F*ck Me' to our Botpop compilation which came out last year.  He seems to be playing loads of shows at the moment, check his myspace for more details and go see!

The mix has none other than 106 (lordy!) tracks on it. To make things more fun we're running a competition, the person that can name the most tracks on the mix will get a prize bought back from the robots from sunny California (and probably some cds and stuff we have lying about too).  Please email your entries to info(at)happyrobots.co.uk with the subject "Botting all over the world"

As people have been asking us about this I thought it best to announce that we're planning on doing a repress of the Botpop compilation cd, we should receive the new cds in a month or so so hang tight!  The stunning Arthur and Martha album, 'Navigation' will now be released on the 6th July however we do have copies to sell ourselves now, pick it up from the Botshop now.

You can download the latest podcast from here (right click link to download the mp3).

Subscribe to the podcast by clicking on http://happyrobots.libsyn.com/rss

After three years in the making, Happy Robots are proud to announce the release of ‘Navigation’ the debut album from Arthur and Martha. Those three years have been tumultuous ones; in which the band battled personal demons driven by the loss of loved ones and broken relationships. Yet the band remained resolute throughout, a fact which is reflected in the innocent charm, and upbeat nature, of these 10 new songs.

Arthur and Martha are Adam Cresswell and Alice Hubley. As Arthur and Martha they employ all manner of kiddies instruments, moogs and old-school drum machines to build their songs. The album itself ranges from the bleak M83-esque moodiness of the title track to the kraut rock stomp of live favourite ‘Squarewave to Heaven’. The album features an extended version of the band’s debut single ‘Autovia’ and forthcoming foamy pop hit ‘Music for Hairproducts’.

Arthur & Martha’s debut single ‘Autovia’ received rave reviews from the likes of the NME and Artrocker and multiple Radio 1 plays from Huw Stephens. The band built on this success, gigging with the likes of Lo-Fi Fnk, Grovesnor, Plastic Operator, Sportsday Megaphone and others. The band are flattered to have been compared to Kraftwerk, Add N to X, Pet Shop Boys and Soft Cell. Preceding the album, is the new single ‘Music for Hair Products’ due for a digital release on the 8th June.  

The Arthur and Martha live experience is a sensory treat, featuring some of the aforementioned collection of old synths and playground instruments, complimented by electronic beats and live projections. More shows are planned for Summer 2009 to coincide with the album release.

The album will hit the shelves on the 29th June 2009 however you can now order copies from the Happy Robots Botshop http://happyrobots.bigcartel.com

Us robots have been working hard and will hopefully have news on the forthcoming Arthur and Martha album very shortly, exciting stuff!
In the meantime, we've just signed up to twitter, please be our friends!
Hope you are well
Love The Happy Robots xx

Happy Robots Present
Grovesnor
Arthur and Martha
Meat Raffle Djs
+more TBC
Old Blue Last
4th March 2009
£4 in advance/ £5 on the door
http://www.wegottickets.com/event/43655

Let Grovesnor seduce you with his own smooth-electro-aor-pop-tronica, his first London show since the summer.

Grovesnor
is one Robert Smoughton, last year Greco Roman (record label run by Joe
Hot Chip and his mates) released ‘Drive Your Car’ which is probably the
only single ever to be a Radio 2 drive time hit and on a Kitsune
Compilation. 2008 also saw him supporting the likes of Glass Candy,
Alphabeat and Kelley Polar and play a killer set at the Ekko festival
in Norway.

Happy Robots were lucky enough to book his first show
as a three piece, now he takes it up a notch and will be launching his
new six piece band this evening.
http://www.grovesnor-music.co.uk

Arthur and Martha are a London based synthesiser duo who make like Chris and Cosey at a swingers party with Section 25
Their debut lp ‘Navigation’ is out soon on Happy Robots.
http://www.myspace.com/arthurandmartha

Meat
Raffle take a break from their monthly Catch residency to play their
ever changing selection of space disco, acid house and horror
soundtracks.
http://www.myspace.com/meatraffleclub
http://www.myspace.com/happyrobots

Botpop got a lovely review in the Guardian this week, we are Happy Happy Robots! Read on for more. There are a limited number of the cd album available left, click the button on our myspace to order.

Autovia by Arthur and Martha has garnered a spot in the coveted top 20 tracks by the lovely folks at Indie MP3, yey!

Things have been quiet for us robots of late but never fear we will be able to announce details of our next release in the new year and expect soon our best of 2008 electropop podcast, gosh it's been a wicked year for electropop hasn't it?

The exciting stuff is we can confirm that we've got our next Happy Robots show booked for 4th March with Arthur and Martha and Grovesnor (ex Hot Chip folks) playing at the Old Blue Last, it's going to be awesome! We'll hopefully have some super ace djs confirmed soon too!

Hope you're enjoying the festive season
Love
The Happy Robots xx

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/dec/12/electronicmusic-botpop

Botpop is music for robots to dance to, distributed by a tiny British label that aims to take optimistic, electronic songs to the masses. The top 40 is not too troubled by their efforts, but this lovely compilation speaks much of the innocence and melancholy that props up perfect pop. Take, for instance, the Bridal Shop's Cloudkick, which makes something euphoric from the ghosts of the Cure, Swedish indie and mid-90s trance, or the Coal Daughters' astonishing take on Kraftwerk's legacy. But it's DJ Downfall's To Bring You Joy that says everything with its soft, shimmering beats and gentle vocoder, showing what happens when electronica lets go of the mind and goes straight for the heart.

Those fine chaps at the Pop n Cherries blog have written another glowing review of Botpop, aren't they super? Read on...


Botpop Volume One (Happy Robots)

The term "indietronica" is finally being reclaimed by the very wonderful Happy Robots records (home of Arthur and Martha) to represent a compilation of perfect pop ditties where pure electropop and indie aesthetics cross-pollinate to breed a new kind of POP! Whereas the term "indietronica" has more and more become an excuse for uneventful underachieving singer-songwriter type "indiepop" artists to make their meandering "tunes" look more interesting and "radical" by adding some superficial electronical clicks (and no I am not naming any names, you will just have to work it out for yourselves) the Happy Robots team show how it should properly be done.

No mere melding of an electronic undercarriage to dull pedestrian indiepop tunes here. Instead we get a compilation full of first rate electropop gems, albeit with a true independent heart beating under their shiny robotic exterior. BotPop opens up with the latest instalment in Swedish band the Bridal Shop's quest to make THE perfect pop song of the year and they might just have achieved their goal. Whereas their songs have always been the perfect marriage between true Sarah records-esque indiepop and a Saint Etienne-esque dancepop shimmer, "cloudkick" sees them perfecting this skill by adding an even more dancefloor friendly touch, making it an almost balearic type classic for the naughties.

Arthur and Martha themselves deliver another highlight with new track "ultra alliance", less a gliding Kraftwerk-esque tune than their "autovia" single, but more of a New Order-type melody vs Pet Shop Boys influenced dancefloor anthem…

Former Plone member Mike In Mono shows he is still master of the electropop instrumental, albeit in a less children television/radiophonic workshop take on the Plone sound. "Promare" sounds more like one of those wonderful instrumentals you could find tucked away on the b-side of an old Soft Cell 12 inch.

The wonderfully monikered "Television Keeps Us Apart" deliver a sort of electropop take on the classic Labrador records sound, in the process beating those last two the Legends albums at their own game.

Jupiter's "rollergirl" is everything you'd wish a Annie song would sound like (but seldom does). The Hong Kong in the 60's track "meet at Vincent Sq" sounds like Kraftwerk soundtracking a 60's spy thriller with Laetitia Stereolab or Kazu Blonde Redhead on additional vocals, and is utterly gorgeous (again and again they show themselves to be one of the finest and most versatile new bands about and I for one can't wait for them to get round to releasing an album which will be an absolute masterpiece). Ooh, I could go on and on ... There's no fillers here.

The enigmatic The Coal Daughters close proceedings with "panzerkrieg", another stately electropop instrumental which could have been included on Japan's classic "gentlemen take polaroids" album (and that is meant as a compliment).

http://popncherries.skynetblogs.be/