The Girl and the Robot

"The Girl and the Robot"
Single by Röyksopp featuring Robyn
from the album Junior
Released 15 June 2009
Format CD single, digital download,
12" single
Recorded 2009
Genre Electropop, synthpop
Length 4:29
Label Astralwerks, Wall of Sound
Writer(s) Röyksopp, Robyn
Producer(s)

Röyksopp

Röyksopp chronology
"Happy Up Here"
(2009)		 "The Girl and the Robot"
(2009)		 "This Must Be It"
(2009)
Robyn chronology
"Who's That Girl"
(2008)		 "The Girl and the Robot"
(2009)		 "Dancing on My Own"
(2010)
Music video
"The Girl and the Robot" on YouTube

"The Girl and the Robot" is a song by Norwegian electronic duo Röyksopp from their third studio album, Junior (2009). The song features uncredited vocals from Swedish singer Robyn, and was released on 15 June 2009 as the album's second single, with remixes from Kris Menace, Chateau Marmont and Spencer & Hill.[1][2]

The Jean Elan Remix of the track was nominated for the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical.[3] The song was ranked number sixty-eight on Pitchfork Media's list of The Top 100 Tracks of 2009.[4]

The song was used in the CSI: NY episode "Grounds for Deception", originally aired on 13 May 2009.

Critical reception

The song has been highly praised by critics and it has been often pointed out as one of the highlights of the album. "The Girl and the Robot" was named "Song of the Day" by Popjustice before the album was released, with reviewer calling it "a demented, choral, electronic masterpiece" and "brilliantly obsessive, bunnyboiling extravaganza."[5] BBC Music labelled it "album-stealer",[6] The Guardian called it "tremendous",[7] Pitchfork Media wrote it is "a frigid, winding bit of electro that combines a powerhouse vocal with some slippery chord changes and one of the biggest choruses of 2009 so far"[8] and Chewing Gum for The Ears noticed the track "features an excellent vocal performance by super-Swede Robyn in a techno-tinged tale of a lonely girl and her hard-working lover that's both emotional and a little goofy".[9] The Line of Best Fit described the song as "possibly the most successful [track], ... a curious tale of an ill-fated romance between a girl and… a robot",[10] while Resident Advisor called it "charming" and "over-the-top pop"[11] and Edwin's Raisin declared it "a soaring, theatrical powerhouse".[12]

Music video

The official music video for the song was filmed in London on 27 April 2009.[13] The video stars Robyn and, for the first time, both Torbjørn Brundtland and Svein Berge appear in their own video. It was released online on 21 May 2009.

Track listing

CD single

  1. The Girl and the Robot (Radio Edit) – 3:08
  2. The Girl and the Robot (Album Version) – 4:28

Remixes

  1. The Girl and the Robot (Kris Menace Remix) – 7:17
  2. The Girl and the Robot (Kris Menace Re-interpretation) – 5:54
  3. The Girl and the Robot (Spencer & Hill Remix) – 6:09
  4. The Girl and the Robot (Spencer & Hill Instrumental) – 6:09
  5. The Girl and the Robot (Spencer & Hill Radio Edit) – 3:25
  6. The Girl and the Robot (Joakim Remix) – 7:19
  7. The Girl and the Robot (Joakim Instrumental) – 7:19
  8. The Girl and the Robot (Chateau Marmont Remix) – 4:07
  9. The Girl and the Robot (Ocelot Remix) – 6:10
  10. The Girl and the Robot (Jean Elan Remix) – 6:21
  11. The Girl and the Robot (Davide Rossi Suite for a Robotic Girl Re-Interpretation) – 4:29
  12. The Girl and the Robot (Jeremy Wheatley Edit Longer Version) – 4:30
  13. The Girl and the Robot (Jeremy Wheatley Radio Edit) – 3:08

Charts

Chart (2009) Peak
position
Belgian Tip Chart (Flanders)[14] 3
Belgian Tip Chart (Wallonia)[14] 19
Norwegian Singles Chart[14] 2
Swedish Singles Chart[14] 25

References

  1. ↑ http://royksopp.com/next-single-the-girl-and-the-robot
  2. ↑ http://royksopp.com/music/the-girl-and-the-robot-feat-robyn
  3. ↑ http://www.grammy.com/grammy_awards/52nd_show/list.aspx
  4. ↑ http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7742-the-top-100-tracks-of-2009/4/
  5. ↑ http://www.popjustice.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3470&Itemid=279
  6. ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/wz4h
  7. ↑ Lynskey, Dorian (20 March 2009). "Röyksopp: Junior". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  8. ↑ http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/12860-junior/
  9. ↑ http://chewinggumfortheears.blogspot.com/2009/04/review-royksopp-junior.html
  10. ↑ http://www.thelineofbestfit.com/2009/03/royksopp-junior/
  11. ↑ http://www.residentadvisor.net/review-view.aspx?id=6024
  12. ↑ http://edwinsraisin.blogspot.com/2009/06/royksopp-girl-robot-single-review-album.html
  13. ↑ "Robyn's official Twitter profile". Twitter. 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 "norwegiancharts.com – Röyksopp – The Girl And The Robot". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 4 April 2010.