Automatic's Australian Arrival

After winning over Australian hearts on their sold-out tour in January this year, L.A. synth-dance-punk trio Automatic are back down under for round two as they gear up for Splendour In The Grass, a few shows supporting Yeah Yeah Yeahs and a couple of their own headline shows thrown in for good measure around Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia.

Automatic’s return to Australia continues the band’s Aussie connection, which most recently came in the form of a remix of their single Skyscraper by none other than W.A.’s own GUM & Ginoli - aka Jay Watson (Pond, Tame Impala) and James Ireland (Pond), flipping the original into a lush & layered housey affair.

With Automatic's acclaimed sophomore album Excess just celebrating its first birthday, the trio of Izzy Glaudini (synths, vocals), Halle Saxon (bass, vocals) and Lola Dompé (drums, vocals) are ready to bring them to the live stage for existing fans and new audiences this July. We checked in with Izzy to find out about the remix, releasing on influential hip hop label Stones Throw, playing Splendour, what they’re looking forward to about coming back down under and more!

We’re loving the GUM & Ginoli remix of Skyscraper - how did you link up with these West Aussie legends?

Our lovely and legendary Spinning Top management is from Australia originally, and they put out the Gum & Ginolis projects.  Those lads also play in Tame Impala and Pond, managed by Spinning Top as well…  All the Aussie legends stick together, it’s a big kooky family.

Both of your albums have been released by iconic label Stones Throw - how did you land on that label?

We had been playing out the LA DIY scene incessantly and our demo tape caught the ear of a friend doing A&R at Stones Throw. It’s LA baby, it’s always who you know that gets your foot in the door.  We do get on very well with everyone at Stones Throw, they are very artist friendly.

What’s it been like working with a label most known for iconic hip hop records?

We really love it! We get roped into the ‘post-punk’ genre a lot, and of course we have a lot of love for the roots of that era, but we’ve always been interested in experimenting and genre hopping as a band.  Our sound is self-taught and janky, and we draw heavy inspiration from Hip Hop sample culture, which builds songs like collages, rather than lofty chord structures. We all have pretty diverse music tastes, and as our sound evolves I think we’ll be experimenting with all kinds of genres.

With your last album Excess released just over a year ago, how are the songs from that album feeling in the live setting now?

We’re not quite tired of it yet! It’s still very fun to play live and it’s been cool seeing our audience grow a bit. And unfortunately, the world is still quite fucked up, so it’s still relevant.

How do you approach playing a set at a flagship festival like Splendour compared to your own shows?

Personally, the anxiety level and ‘technique’ is still the same no matter the size of the crowd. Maybe we cake on the make up a bit more for the larger crowds.

What are you most looking forward to about your upcoming Australian tour?

Perfecting our terrible Australian accents, eating delicious food, buying vintage clothes we can’t afford, making out with strangers. We just love it down here!

Can you share any news about upcoming releases?

There may be some remixes on the way, there may be some guest vocal collaborations on the way, but original Automatic songs might take a second. We’re in the very embryonic phase of writing album number 3… After this tour we will be digging into the routine a bit more.  It’s impossible for us to write on tour, we’re just not that kind of band, so we need time off from traveling to get it done. Promise, it’ll be good!

What have you been listening to lately?

It’s a hot/ heavy LA summer right now, I’ve been listening to a lot of exotica and things of that sort. Dorothy Ashby’s Afro-Harping is always nice in the summer. Oxygen by Jean-Michel Jarree, for a bit of synth inspiration. George Clinton, Cypress Hill, MGMT, Black Marble.  Like I said, kind of eclectic.

Automatic - Australian Tour Dates

Wednesday, 19 July - Melbourne, VIC - The Night Cat
Thursday, 20 July - Melbourne, VIC - MCA (supporting Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
Saturday, 22 July - Byron Bay, NSW - Splendour In The Grass
Monday, 24 July - Sydney, NSW - Hordern Pavillion (supporting Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
Wednesday, 26 July - Sydney, NSW - The Lansdowne
Friday, 28 July - North Fremantle, WA - Mojos

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