Background
"Robot Boy", despite its seemingly simple premise, is one of the most complex songs on A Thousand Suns. Chester claimed "'Blackout' and 'Robot Boy' were a lot of fun to record. There were so many elements to the songs that it made them really interesting to do" on the LP Underground Newsletter Anniversary Edition. The song's piano intro makes way for a song dominated by Mike and Chester's layered voices, harmonies building into a climactic synth solo. Its intense use of layering is what stops the song from being performed in its entirety live. In a LPU Chat in 2013, on the subject of "Skin To Bone" and "Robot Boy" live, Mike replied, "Some songs weren't made to be played live, we might play them somehow but we have other songs in mind, those songs are made of samples and keys if the band was made of 6 Shinodas we could play them."[1]
Remix
In 2011, the Street Drum Corps did a remix of the song, dubbing it "unofficial" even though the band clearly had sent them the song's stems for their remix.
Versions
Note: Only the date of the very first release of each version is listed.
Studio
Title | Album | Length | Recorded | Released | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Robot Boy | A Thousand Suns | 4:29 | 2008-2010 | September 8, 2010 | |
Robot Boy (Test Mix, Optional Vocal Take) | LP Underground Eleven | 4:31 | November 15, 2011 |
|
Remix
Title | Album | Length | Recorded | Released | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Street Drum Corps' Unofficial Remix of Linkin Parks Robot Boy | 4:26 | November 5, 2011 |
|
Live
"Robot Boy" has never been played live in its studio form. It has, however, been consistently performed throughout The Hunting Party touring cycle as a shortened instrumental, starting with KFMA Day 2014. When performing this version, Mike is the only person truly playing, as he plays the synth solo. "Robot Boy" was the first song to get its debut after the cycle for the album it appears on has ended.
Variations
Last Updated: December 25, 2015
Type | Description | First Played | Last Played |
---|---|---|---|
Alternative | Shortened (Intro, Synth Bridge, and Ending Instrumental Only) | May 24, 2014 | November 7, 2015 |
Personnel
Lyrics
You say / you're not gonna fight / 'cause no one will fight for you
And you think / there's not enough love / and no one to give it to
And you're sure / you've hurt for so long / you've got nothing left to lose
So you say / you're not gonna fight / 'cause no one will fight for you
You say / the weight of the world / has kept you from letting go
And you think / compassion's a flaw / and you'll never let it show
And you're sure / you've hurt in a way / that no one will ever know
But someday / the weight of the world / will give you the strength to go
Woah, oh, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, woah, oh woah
Yeah, no
Hold on / the weight of the world / will give you the strength to go (No, no, no, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah / Yeah, no)
So hold on / the weight of the world / will give you the strength to go (Yeah, no, yeah no, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
So hold on / the weight of the world / will give you the strength to go (Yeah, woah, not, not, not, not, oh God)
Just hold on / the weight of your world / will give you the strength to go
External Links
References
- ↑ Mike LPU Chat, June 26, 2013