THE AUTONS http://www.autons.info/ Fast-rising UK band Autons operate on many levels of fantasy and disconnection. They take their moniker from the artificial life forms of the same name that plague the universe of the beloved British sci-fi show Dr. Who, and for the past year they’ve told people that they met and formed a band while auditioning for roles as Autons on the show. They don’t use their real last names (they all go by “Auton”). Their new album, Short Term Manifesto (Zip Records), is made up of ten songs about people looking in on situations and relationships from an outside perspective, with a robotic inability to connect with the world. The Autons follow the grand misanthropic tradition of electronica music by disguising the themes of emotional automation in their lyrics behind bright Euro-disco keyboards and itchy punk guitars. “I wouldn’t say it’s something I consciously try to achieve, it just happens,” says Autons singer/songwriter David Auton (see what I’m saying about the names?) about the estrangement in his songs. “I do feel that the world is becoming more disconnected, emotionally; people seem more comfortable talking to each other via internet/mobile phone - me included.” Oh, and the cherry on top of all this is that the interview for this article was conducted via internet. We didn’t even have to speak to each other. So far, Autons have found quite a bit of success in Europe. The record’s first single, “Snakes,” is an 80mph thrash-fest that exploded across the UK when it was first released there in 2006, and landed the band in heavy rotation on Radio One and MTV Europe. They were selected as the first band to be featured on Dandelion Radio, a John Peel-inspired internet radio station. “Andrew Morrison, one of the Dandelion Radio DJs, heard ‘Snakes’ and just wanted us,” says David. The album also sold out in Germany, Latin America and North America. “Electro music seems to be taking off again,” David says, “but I always say we’re a rock and roll band firstly, but one without a live drummer. Or a bassist, for that matter.” Wait, what? Autons aren’t an electronica band? What about the sequencers? What about the drum machines? What about the stylophone?! Stylophones are so electronica! “Like I said, I always say we’re a rock and roll band, and our influences are overwhelmingly rock and roll based. Buddy Holly, Eddie Cochran, Velvet Underground, Sex Pistols, the Smiths - it’s all Rock and Roll! Having said that,” David continues, “I’ve always had a fascination with electronic music, and that probably originates from my life-long love affair with Cult TV programs like Dr Who, UFO and The Prisoner.” The point is well-taken. Short Term Manifesto sounds like a computer model you might get if you programmed in all the artists mentioned above, along with Radiohead and Pink Floyd. Aside from “Snakes,” which is as good a song as the hype suggests, the album’s other highlights include the post-apocalyptic street preaching of “Ice Major,” the Devo-esque “Shine Tester, Shine Tester,” with it’s vaporous guitars and background vocals, and the almost complete departure into straight Brit-pop that is “Firebird.” As to the meaning of a “short term manifesto,” David Auton explains the term’s origins. “Nothing seems to be planned for the long-term anymore,” he says. “I’m talking mainly about Britain, but it probably applies to the whole world. Nothing’s built to last. It’s a disposable world we live in, I’m afraid, and it’s only going to get worse.” Perhaps in an attempt to save us mortals from this disposable fate, Autons have contributed their song “Maybe” to a film by UK underground media group The Undercurrents titled Climate Change - It’s In Your Hands. The film will be given away with the July 2007 issue of Permaculture Magazine: Solutions For a Sustainable Living. The song is a statement on environmental deterioration and is, “the band's call to arms,” according to Auton. You can get a copy of the DVD at www.permaculture.co.uk. --John Frusciante ### Autons' Short Term Manifesto is out July 10, 2007 on Zip Records. http://www. myspace.com/autonsland
