Sleepwalk A Robot

They got their name from a Matthew Good Band song, but Sleepwalk, a Robot sounds nothing like the acoustic, alternative Canadian and his backing quartet. Rather, Sleepwalk, a Robot shines playing the sounds that middle school girls go ga-ga over and middle-aged men go, “Hey, this sounds pretty good!” over. Forming just two years ago, and playing gigs in Brooklyn and Manhattan before even setting foot in a Phoenix venue, this duo of Justin Barker and Travis Pack choose to use an iPod full of their own beats and bass lines instead of a full band; a certainly unique technique. They also record goofy videos for YouTube and enjoy playing with water guns — things you’d expect more from students in a high school math class rather than from guys who once taught the subject. But that, along with their youthful demeanor, only add to Sleepwalk, a Robot’s pop charm. — John LaBarbera