Joe was born in Auckland, New Zealand. His mum Sandra was, and still is, a theatre director. He doesn't know who his Dad is and he's pretty sure he doesn't want to know. Because of his mum's job, he travelled the country, going where the work was. Because of that, he spent most of his childhood out of conventional schooling, Sandra opting to teach him on the road. Unconventional as it was, he found his early years to be idyllic. He got to see the sights, make friends albeit temporarily and to stay out of school - the concept of which had never really appealed to him anyway. When he was 15, Joe's mother met English playwright Malcolm Bromfield, who was touring one of his productions and had called her in specifically to direct his latest effort. Inevietably, a volatile relationship both professionally and personally formed, and when it was time for Malcolm to leave the country, he invited both Sandra and Joe to join him. She agreed and they were married eighteen months later. They lived in London's West End theatre district for three years until finally, despite producing two award winning shows together, the firey nature of their relationship forced the couple apart. Despite being still on good terms, Sandra and Joe moved to a flat in Camden Town where teenage Joe finally found himself in his element. Continuing to be home schooled, he came away with average grades in English, Music and Art whilst in his free time, hanging out in the vibrant Market area and helping out on stalls to earn some extra cash.

By the time Joe was 17, his mother had met another man. Again, another playwright called Andrew Matheson, from a show she was working on. The passionate writer captured Sandra's heart and imagination and once the run was over, not wanting to be parted from him, moved her family to another country. This time, they arrived in New York. This was something of a culture shock for Joe and took him well away from the comforting space of Camden. He began to withdraw, and had an intense dislike for his new surroundings. Choosing to hide in his bedroom rather than face the bright lights of NY, he began writing music. His room began to fill up with thrift shop acoustic guitars and keyboards that had seen better days, writing songs about space and science fiction, escapism to take his mind off the discontentment he felt with being dragged away from the place where he'd felt safest as a kid.

Concerned with his reclusive behaviour, and becoming aware of the musical talents that Joe was quite happy to restrict to the confines of his bedroom, Andrew and Sandra managed to persuade him to start attending SUNY Purchase in order to attain a Bachelor's degree in Studio Production. Reluctant at first, the shy, awkward teenager eventually managed to put at least some of his nerves aside to make a small circle of friends whilst studying, who managed to stop him from being quite so much of a shut in and become more of a social creature. It was at SUNY where he met one of his closest friends, Jennifer Potters. He did, and still does consider her to be one of his trusted circle and when the time finally came for her to move away to persue her dreams in LA, his tendency to wander struck again and he ended up leaving New York, and his family, behind.

With his degree in his hand and no clue as to what to do with it, Joe began working several part time jobs to pay for a small, one bedroomed flat in Silverlake. Work in bars, cafes and shops sustained him until, after a lot of coersion, he stepped up with an acoustic guitar at an open mic in downtown LA. Much to his surprise, the set of songs he performed went down very well, despite the slightly odd subject matter, and he became a regular fixture on the open mic circuit for a year until he was well known enough to book his own small gigs. By that point, he was working himself into the ground, still working crap day jobs as the gigs, as popular as they were, still weren't enough to pay the rent.

In 2006, everything changed. Following a gig at Spaceland, he was approached by a small but popular indie label, eager to get him into a recording studio. Struggling to keep himself afloat, it wasn't hard to persuade him to take the rather generous advance and start work on his first album. In celebration of the breakthrough, Joe took Jennifer out that week for a wild night on the town in Hollywood. An almost accidental one night stand and nine months later, their daughter Kailee Rachel was born. Deciding to keep their relationship platonic, Joe is still to this day heavily involved in Kailee and Jennifer's lives, despite his now hectic work schedule.

Towards the end of 2007 his record, Lost Transmissions, dropped. Using the pseudonym SmashRobot, it's lead-off single Race for the Prize enjoyed heavy rotation on rock radio and became something of a cult success. A heady mix of electronica, folk and psychedelia, the press began to pick up on SmashRobot and the somewhat enigmatic mastermind behind it. Joe, still not an extrovert by any stretch, began to compensate for his lack of confidence by using drink and recreational drugs to try and coax that side out of him. Spending a year touring the states along with a backing group and indulging in some well publicised rock and roll hedonism earned him some headlines on gossip sites and magazines and a degree of notriety, much to his dismay, not least because of his apparent ambiguous sexuality. Being snapped leaving venues and bars in the company of both men and women has become a source of speculation whilst Joe has remained tight lipped on the subject.

When 2009 came around, it was time to start work on his second album and that, simply entitled Smashrobot is due for release on May 12th 2010. He has spent his downtime attempting to curb his habits and spending quality time with both Kailee and Jennifer. He can also occasionally be found guest DJing in various clubs, especially when tour time comes around.

Joe Finlay.
HOME	*.PROFILE* CHARACTER NAME: Joseph Finlay PLAYED BY: Bret McKenzie AGE & DOB: 31 - 3rd December 1978 PLACE OF BIRTH: Auckland, NZ OCCUPATION: Singer/Songwriter, A.K.A SmashRobot RESIDENCE:Silverlake, LA *.QUICK FACTS* - Recreational drug user. - Once took magic mushrooms on a camping trip with some local punks and ran away. Was found the following morning sat up a tree, talking to a squirrel. - Doesn't own a TV, but has a massive collection of DVDs and prefers to watch shows online. - Is very good at origami. - Chronic Insomniac. - Claims to exist on Coffee and sugar.
JOURNAL
ICONS
ADD
SCRIBBLD
*STORYLINES...* Jennifer Potters - best friend and mother of his daughter Kailee. Diana Hayes - close friend, met through being on the same record label.
~personality
Joe is an awkward and shy character, despite his fairly high profile occupation. He tends to use his pseudonym as an alter ego to disguise is inherent introverted nature. He is prone to using recreational substances to boost his confidence, but only when he's on the road, choosing to keep his home and work life as separate as he possibly can for the sake of his daughter. His true friends know him to be quite a sweet, thoughtful character, with an off-kilter sense of humour and bursting with creativity. In his spare time he likes nothing more than to paint and spend time with Kailee and Jennifer, who provide some stability in his otherwise frantic lifestyle.
~history
Joe was born in Auckland, New Zealand. His mum Sandra was, and still is, a theatre director. He doesn't know who his Dad is and he's pretty sure he doesn't want to know. Because of his mum's job, he travelled the country, going where the work was. Because of that, he spent most of his childhood out of conventional schooling, Sandra opting to teach him on the road. Unconventional as it was, he found his early years to be idyllic. He got to see the sights, make friends albeit temporarily and to stay out of school - the concept of which had never really appealed to him anyway. When he was 15, Joe's mother met English playwright Malcolm Bromfield, who was touring one of his productions and had called her in specifically to direct his latest effort. Inevietably, a volatile relationship both professionally and personally formed, and when it was time for Malcolm to leave the country, he invited both Sandra and Joe to join him. She agreed and they were married eighteen months later. They lived in London's West End theatre district for three years until finally, despite producing two award winning shows together, the firey nature of their relationship forced the couple apart. Despite being still on good terms, Sandra and Joe moved to a flat in Camden Town where teenage Joe finally found himself in his element. Continuing to be home schooled, he came away with average grades in English, Music and Art whilst in his free time, hanging out in the vibrant Market area and helping out on stalls to earn some extra cash. By the time Joe was 17, his mother had met another man. Again, another playwright called Andrew Matheson, from a show she was working on. The passionate writer captured Sandra's heart and imagination and once the run was over, not wanting to be parted from him, moved her family to another country. This time, they arrived in New York. This was something of a culture shock for Joe and took him well away from the comforting space of Camden. He began to withdraw, and had an intense dislike for his new surroundings. Choosing to hide in his bedroom rather than face the bright lights of NY, he began writing music. His room began to fill up with thrift shop acoustic guitars and keyboards that had seen better days, writing songs about space and science fiction, escapism to take his mind off the discontentment he felt with being dragged away from the place where he'd felt safest as a kid. Concerned with his reclusive behaviour, and becoming aware of the musical talents that Joe was quite happy to restrict to the confines of his bedroom, Andrew and Sandra managed to persuade him to start attending SUNY Purchase in order to attain a Bachelor's degree in Studio Production. Reluctant at first, the shy, awkward teenager eventually managed to put at least some of his nerves aside to make a small circle of friends whilst studying, who managed to stop him from being quite so much of a shut in and become more of a social creature. It was at SUNY where he met one of his closest friends, Jennifer Potters. He did, and still does consider her to be one of his trusted circle and when the time finally came for her to move away to persue her dreams in LA, his tendency to wander struck again and he ended up leaving New York, and his family, behind. With his degree in his hand and no clue as to what to do with it, Joe began working several part time jobs to pay for a small, one bedroomed flat in Silverlake. Work in bars, cafes and shops sustained him until, after a lot of coersion, he stepped up with an acoustic guitar at an open mic in downtown LA. Much to his surprise, the set of songs he performed went down very well, despite the slightly odd subject matter, and he became a regular fixture on the open mic circuit for a year until he was well known enough to book his own small gigs. By that point, he was working himself into the ground, still working crap day jobs as the gigs, as popular as they were, still weren't enough to pay the rent. In 2006, everything changed. Following a gig at Spaceland, he was approached by a small but popular indie label, eager to get him into a recording studio. Struggling to keep himself afloat, it wasn't hard to persuade him to take the rather generous advance and start work on his first album. In celebration of the breakthrough, Joe took Jennifer out that week for a wild night on the town in Hollywood. An almost accidental one night stand and nine months later, their daughter Kailee Rachel was born. Deciding to keep their relationship platonic, Joe is still to this day heavily involved in Kailee and Jennifer's lives, despite his now hectic work schedule. Towards the end of 2007 his record, Lost Transmissions, dropped. Using the pseudonym SmashRobot, it's lead-off single Race for the Prize enjoyed heavy rotation on rock radio and became something of a cult success. A heady mix of electronica, folk and psychedelia, the press began to pick up on SmashRobot and the somewhat enigmatic mastermind behind it. Joe, still not an extrovert by any stretch, began to compensate for his lack of confidence by using drink and recreational drugs to try and coax that side out of him. Spending a year touring the states along with a backing group and indulging in some well publicised rock and roll hedonism earned him some headlines on gossip sites and magazines and a degree of notriety, much to his dismay, not least because of his apparent ambiguous sexuality. Being snapped leaving venues and bars in the company of both men and women has become a source of speculation whilst Joe has remained tight lipped on the subject. When 2009 came around, it was time to start work on his second album and that, simply entitled Smashrobot is due for release on May 12th 2010. He has spent his downtime attempting to curb his habits and spending quality time with both Kailee and Jennifer. He can also occasionally be found guest DJing in various clubs, especially when tour time comes around.
~discography
2007: Lost Transmissions [in the style of The Flaming Lips] 1. "Race for the Prize" (Mokran Remix) – 4:09 2. "A Spoonful Weighs a Ton" – 3:32 3. "The Spark That Bled" ("The Softest Bullet Ever Shot") – 5:55 4. "The Spiderbite Song" – 4:02 5. "Buggin'" (Mokran Remix) – 3:16 6. "What Is the Light?" ("An Untested Hypothesis Suggesting That the Chemical (In Our Brains) by Which We Are Able to Experience the Sensation of Being in Love Is the Same Chemical That Caused the "Big Bang" That Was the Birth of the Accelerating Universe") – 4:05 7. "The Observer" – 4:11 8. "Waitin' for a Superman" ("Is It Gettin' Heavy?") – 4:17 9. "Suddenly Everything Has Changed" ("Death Anxiety Caused by Moments of Boredom") – 3:54 10. "The Gash" ("Battle Hymn for the Wounded Mathematician") – 4:02 11. "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate" – 5:17 12. "Sleeping on the Roof" (excerpt from "Should We Keep the Severed Head Awake??") – 3:09 13. "Race for the Prize" ("Sacrifice of the New Scientists") – 4:18 14. "Waitin' for a Superman" (Mokran Remix) – 4:19 2010: SmashRobot Tracklist to be announced...
credit to splott at rp_tutorials