In the service of desire
We will travel far away
Los Angeles trio Automatic returns with their second album, Excess. Their latest single, New Beginnings, is a brilliant romp through the apocalypse holding hands with their unique strain of retrofuturist motorik pop.
The pulsing track, “riding the imaginary edge of 70s underground meets 80s corporate culture”, both lampoons and embraces the siren song of extravagant consumerist culture in the bleak, isolationist era of late capitalism. Scorched earth? No worries, there’s a better place out there…
Bringing to mind the terrifying visions of Fad Gadget and DEVO, the sci-fi of Gary Numan, and the gorgeous retro-feel of Ladytron, Automatic knocks it out of the park with the video clip directed by Ambar Navarro. Inspired by the Swedish sci-fi film Aniara, in this narrative Automatic reject the false hope of manned space travel…a more corporate Major Tom tale. Imagining the “nihilism and loneliness” of attempting to escape the planet once unchecked consumerism has reached its logical outcome, the song pictures being “stranded in a space-void with no connection to Earth or humanity.”
Watch the video for “New Beginning” below:
Automatic is comprised of Izzy Glaudini (synths, lead vocals), Lola Dompé (drums, vocals), and Halle Saxon (bass, vocals). “New Beginnings” comes off their forthcoming album Excess, due out 24 June via Stones Throw.
Pre-order it on vinyl and deluxe eco-mix vinyl here
The mirrored bodice on the album’s cover – shot at California’s Salton Sea, a site of environmental decay – reflects the present-day Automatic explores on Excess: distorted and chaotic with a sleek sheen. The final message, however, is one of solidarity rather than despair. “The record is about what happens to our psyches when we’re conditioned to certain values, the consequences of those values, and a desire to resist them,” says Glaudini.
Automatic hits the road this spring and summer, and have announced shows with Tame Impala, Parquet Courts and Osees. The band have also confirmed a performance at Cruel World Festival before heading to Europe for a run of shows which includes Wide Awake (UK), Primavera Sound (Spain), and Best Kept Secret (Netherlands).
See below for a full list of dates. Find tickets and more info here.
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Tour Dates:
US (with Parquet Courts)
- Apr 22: Seattle, WA – Showbox
- Apr 23: Vancouver, BC – Imperial
- Apr 25: Portland, OR – Crystal Ballroom
- Apr 27: Oakland, CA – Fox
- Apr 28: Los Angeles, CA – Wiltern
US
- May 14-15: Los Angeles, CA – Cruel World Festival
- US (with Tame Impala)
- May 24 : Wilmington, NC – Live Oak Bank Pavilion
- May 26 : Columbus, OH – KEMBA Live! Festival Stage
UK & EUROPE
- May 28: UK, London – Wide Awake
- May 29: UK, Manchester – Yes
- May 30: UK, Leeds – Headrow House
- May 31: UK, Brighton – Green Door Store
- Jun 01: FR, Lille – L’Aéronef
- Jun 02: FR, Paris – L’international
- Jun 03: FR, Angers – Levitation
- Jun 04: ES, Barcelona – Primavera
- Jun 05: ES, Barcelona – Primavera
- Jun 08: IT, Ravenna – Beaches Brew
- Jun 09: CH, Neuchatel – Festineuch
- Jun 10: CH, Aarau – Kiff (with Choir Boy & Soft Kill)
- Jun 11: DE, Mannheim – Maifeld Derbi
- Jun 12: NL, Hilvarenbeek – Best Kept Secret
- Jun 13: NL, Amsterdam – Bitterzoet
- Jun 14: NL, Nijmegen – Merleyn
- Jun 15: DE, Berlin – UFO Sound Studios
- Jun 16: DE, Koln – Bumann & Sohn
- Jun 17: BE, Charlerois – Fete De La Musique
- Jun 18: NL, Den Haag – Grauzone
US (with Osees)
- Sep 05: San Francisco, CA – Chapel
- Sep 06: San Francisco, CA – Chapel
- Sep 07: San Francisco, CA- Chapel
- Sep 09: Portland, OR – Roseland
- Sep 10: Seattle, WA – Neumos
- Sep 11: Seattle, WA – Neumos
