“What do machines sing of?” It’s a semi-reasonable question asked by a recent installation by Berlin-based hacker/composer Martin Backes. The answer, obviously, is that they sing about whatever they are damn well programmed to sing about. In this case, Backes has created a robot to sing an endless loop of ‘90s love songs like “My Heart Will Go On” and “I Will Always Love You.”
While the artist statement claims the robot “attempts to apply the appropriate human sentiments” to the songs, it’s not really clear how much this “fully automated machine” is able to do that. But it’s still pretty soothing to listen to eternal love pledged by a machine that might outlive humanity.
Join the discussion...