Robin Hawkins
| Rob Hawkins | |
|---|---|
 Rob and Iwan on the 2008 club tour | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Robin Hawkins |
| Born | 11 February 1986 |
| Genres | Indie rock, electro, pop punk |
| Instruments | Vocals, bass, guitar, keyboards/synths, flute |
| Associated acts | The Automatic |
| Website | Robs livejournal |
| Notable instruments | |
| Fender USA Jazz Bass | |
Robin Hawkins (born 11 February 1986), commonly known as Rob is the primary vocalist and bassist for Welsh band The Automatic.
Personal life
Rob studied at Cowbridge Comprehensive School, completing his A-levels and going on to take a chance with The Automatic in his gap year. Originally Rob was more interested in playing flute, joining the Cardiff and Vale Youth Orchestra, however later, at the age of 12 after buying a bass from Automatic guitarist James Frost, he taught himself to play and eventually saved enough money to afford his Fender USA Jazz Bass.[1] Hawkins speaks Esperanto as a hobby.[2] He graduated from Cardiff University with a BSc 1st class degree in Computer Science. His final year project was an investigation of musicality perception in an evolutionary context, the results of which were published in ICMC'14.[3]
Musical career
Lead vocalist and bassist, Robin also has been seen playing a variety of other instruments for The Automatic, most notably the flute during the band's performances of Gold Digger and the synthesizer during performances of "This Is A Fix".[4]
Notable appearances
On 9 January 2007, he and former band-mate Alex Pennie stood in for Zane Lowe on BBC Radio 1, in a series of stand-ins whilst Zane Lowe was on holiday. The line-up also included fellow band on B-Unique Records, Kaiser Chiefs, as well as The View, Snow Patrol, and The Zutons.[5]
Equipment
Rob predominantly uses a Fender USA Jazz Bass which he saved for and purchased before the band were signed in 2002.He has used and purchased various bases, however prefers his Jazz bass to other models he has used.[6]
- Ashdown bass amps
- Fender USA Jazz Bass
- Boss Bass Overdrive
- Boss Chromatic Tuner
- SansAmp Bass DI (x2)
- Dunlop .73mm Plectrums
- Musicman Stingray Electric Bass
References
- ↑ "People ask me what it's like to have a famous son". icwales.icnetwork.co.uk (Interview with AnneMarie Hawkins, Robs Mum). October 30, 2006. Retrieved 2008-11-10.
- ↑ "The Automatic's Rob Hawkins on learning Esperanto". http://www.bbc.co.uk/news (News Article). August 23, 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-24. External link in
|work=(help) - ↑ "μTunes: A Study of Musicality Perception in an Evolutionary Context" (PDF).
- ↑ Sadler, Darren; Peter Hill (photo) (2008-01-04). "Automatic For The People! Brit Crusaders Steeled to Kick-start UK rock". Rock Sound. Retrieved 2008-06-10. Cite uses deprecated parameter
|coauthors=(help) - ↑ "Bands stand in for Lowe on Radio 1". digitalspy.co.uk (Matt Houghton). December 5, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
- ↑ "From the feature Automatic Success, Video interview with Robin Hawkins, the equipment Rob uses". Show Me How To Play. Archived from the original on November 20, 2007. Retrieved 2008-06-10.