He has been labeled by Daytrotter as “One of the most creative and potentially scary minds of our generation” and by Spin Magazine as "purely artistic, baffling, and almost completely uncommercial".
In 2002 he released They Ate Themselves, his first record as The Robot Ate Me and played his first shows in Los Angeles opening for notable touring acts such as Daniel Johnson, Tegan and Sara, Metric, Stars and The Blackheart Procession. Skyscraper Magazine described his first release as "Quite possibly the year's most arresting experimental pop record, They Ate Themselves is a dizzyingly vibrant trip through death and multi-layered dissonance."
The controversial and highly experimental On Vacation was released in 2004 in which Adam Gnade declared "It's not even music outside the margins. Here the margins were never there, and if they were to encroach, The Robot Ate Me would probably up and croak."
Punk Planet followed suit describing the album as "A hypnotic two-disc record that will score your twisted nightmares and fanciful dreams."
Splendid summarized "It is impossible to understand a Robot Ate Me album from a written description."
After the release of On Vacation in 2004 he signed with Kill Rock Stars and toured the US heavily the next few years playing close to 600 shows in the following three years. His shows relied heavily on audience participation and were known for being fairly unpredictable. As part of his shows he would sometimes be dragged across the floor by attendees, wear masks, scream loudly, have the audience play the supporting instruments for his songs without rehearsal, or abruptly leave after playing one song.
The 2005 release of Carousel Waltz brought a set of minimal American folk songs.
The album was lauded by Babysue as a "strangely compelling and uplifting vision of how love affects a person. Soft and focused, these unusual tunes are simultaneously accessible and peculiar. The Robot Ate Me remains one of the most unique acts on the planet. Brimming with credible substance, Carousel Waltz is yet another killer album from an artist who just keeps getting better and better with time..."
2006 brought the avant-garde Good World which comprised mostly of sparse clarinet lines mixed with minimal percussion and falsetto vocals by Bouchard. Pitchforkmedia asked "Has someone bludgeoned frontman Ryland Bouchard?".
Tinymixtapes declared: "Not since the glory days of punk has an album come and gone so fast and left one with more questions than answers."
In 2008 Ryland Bouchard released Seeds, a hand-made limited edition box set with close to two hours of music (divided between an A-Sides cd/vinyl and a B-Sides cd), a DVD of Super 8 videos, four 7" vinyl records, letter-pressed lyrics, a hand silk-screened shirt, bag, poster, and a set of illustrations by his longtime collaborator Daniel Gibson. Only 500 copies of the set were made.
In 2009, Bouchard completed a Take-Away Show video session for La Blogothèque where he performed songs from Seeds.
The 2009 double vinyl release Cowbirds and Cuckoos was released on November 15, 2009 by Swim Slowly Records.
Lately
The Robot Ate Me Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They laugh and take me in
They send me off to places
They have never been
They were in the same place yesterday
Talking about the people they're not
The things they want
We aren't like them
lately when I speak out
It's just to my friends
There isn't hope for us
If you we don't let others in
I was in the same place yesterday hoping for
People to be the changes they see
We aren't like them
We aren't like them
The Robot Ate Me's song Lately discusses the feelings of alienation and disillusionment that can come from being an outsider in society. The opening lines suggest a disappointment with the reactions of others to the singer's attempts to communicate their thoughts and ideas. Despite being laughed at and dismissed as strange, the singer still yearns for connections with others, imagining the possibility of introducing them to new experiences and ideas. However, they lament the lack of progress and growth they see in those around them, who remain stuck in their own stagnant patterns of behavior and thought.
The chorus acts as a bridge between the two verses, emphasizing the divide between the singer and others. The repetition of the line "We aren't like them" serves to reinforce the idea that the singer feels fundamentally different and apart from the people around them. In the second verse, the singer admits that they have withdrawn from trying to express their thoughts to a wider audience, confining themselves to conversations with their close friends. They express a sense of hopelessness about making meaningful change if they cannot successfully engage with those outside of their immediate circle. The second verse also echoes the idea that change must come from within, with the singer hoping that others will take on the responsibility of being change agents instead of simply talking about change as a theoretical idea.
Overall, "Lately" suggests a deep disillusionment with the world as it is, but also a strong desire for connection and community. The song emphasizes the importance of growth and progress, while acknowledging that it is often difficult to effect change.
Line by Line Meaning
Lately when I speak out
It's just to my friends
They laugh and take me in
There isn't hope for us if we don't let others in
They send me off to places
People to be the changes they see
They have never been
We aren't like them
They were in the same place yesterday
I was in the same place yesterday hoping for
Talking about the people they're not
People to be the changes they see
The things they want
We aren't like them
We aren't like them
We aren't like them
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind