The moving parts of Automatic

The band knew of each other before meeting for the first time at a Crush concert in LA on top of the Ace Hotel, and while that might sound just “so LA,” it also feels somewhat indicative of the music scene itself.

“Venues are a good way to find community,” Dompé explains. “There’s a lot of cool venues that will pop up and then bands of that style will surround them.” This idea rings true in reference to Automatic themselves. Halle had met Lola at a music festival and Izzy in line at a party, but had also seen her in her own band in LA. You could say that, in some ways, the vetting process was already sorted.

Cut to a fully formed band with heavy synth influence if not synth conviction. The group’s approach to making music is one that emphasizes taste over technique, a refreshing perspective. While some may fear the audible nature of what they may consider amateur, Automatic leans into a confidence in what they like and make it so. “I feel like our process is that we usually jam and then we kind of chisel the song into being,” Glaudini explains.

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That chiselling is most obviously denoted in two ways, the first being from the intention behind the equipment the band is using. “Digital can be too clean sometimes and too sterile, so it’s good to have the dirt and the warmth of analogue gear. But we like a mix, you know – it’s not all just that it has to be like the ‘70s. We want to live in the modern era, too,” Dompé offers. Working with producer Loren Humphry, the band was after an authentic, minimalist sound on their latest endeavour. Initially somewhat reluctant to bring a new force into the group, it ultimately proved to be precious.

“I think we’re the kind of band who works really well with people we know and we kind of stay insular amongst ourselves. Working with an outside person, at first we were just out of our comfort zones, but Loren is really generous in terms of listening to our ideas and input and caring what we think. I’m glad we did it because I feel like we expanded our sound and did a lot of things we wouldn’t have done, like added a lot of percussion elements. We recorded everything pretty live in the room together,” Dompé emphasizes.

The second aspect of this chiselling process is Automatic’s striking balance of covert political messaging combined with equally engaging production and instrumentation. There’s an obvious focus in both the literal communication of their work, and its aesthetic intricacies. Warfare, consumerism, and oil are referenced in the band’s own ways, wrapped up in allowing the listener their own private outlet from these overwhelming real-world downers.

“Everything has become a commodity and everyone has become a product because we’ve grown up with consumerist values of being sold things since we were little kids, so it’s just inundated everything, I think,” Glaudini suggests. The title track of the album drives the point home with a beat and sound that’s very much alive, right alongside sharp, punchy lyricism.

“I feel like our taste is kind of what keeps us on the same page. We all have really similar tastes and that becomes more obvious whenever we bring someone in from outside of our circle and it just makes me realise we really are on the same page creatively,” Dompé says. “I think we’re also so lucky that we get along so well and we’re all really low-drama. Like, it’s kind of amazing how well we get along. It’s so rare.”

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Glaudini adds: “I feel like with lyrics, when you get stuck, sometimes you have to rearrange your brain and be a little wacky and, like, surrealist. I like reading poetry and Carl Jung and things that unlock the subconscious a little more. Our song “Mercury” leaned into that a little bit. I wouldn’t say witchy – but I wouldn’t not say witchy – vibes are present in the band.”

With plenty of intention behind their production process to consider, the literally unsung part of Automatic’s overall expression is their visuals; be that in wardrobe, still images, video, or live, there’s homage being paid. “I feel like back in the day, bands would have artists working with them. Today, I feel like everything’s kind of commercialized in this way where it’s about something having a vibe that’s been curated by stylists instead of artists. And so we kind of want to stay more in the artist zone,” Dompé explains.

The band takes most of their visual inspiration from painters and filmmakers, noting that they try to “keep it real.” Consulting art books and magazines for the most grounded sources of inspiration, it’s easy for them to get diluted by the onslaught of people and influences, making it a consistent topic of conversation. “We’ve always been very controlling over our visuals. And we’re trying to continue to be that way,” Dompé says.

There’s a lot for Automatic to consider at any given time. Balancing potentially provocative political lyricism with hopefully provocative musical production and high quality visuals to match, making sure it’s effectively received is always going to be a priority. “We always say you have to draw [in] people in a fun way,” Glaudini concludes. “And we wanted to make people dance a bit too, not be totally serious, and have a little fun and joy.”