Autogramm, synth-driven power-poppers from Seattle, Chicago and Vancouver, have just released their latest single, “Diana”, on Sweden’s Beluga Records. The vinyl seven-inch single is also backed with the song “Licht Aus”, a cover song by the ’80s German new wave band Nichts.
The new single follows Autogramm’s tradition of crafting sing-along new wave anthems, but this time with a darker twist. “Diana” subtly fuses the tick-tack rhythms, motorik basslines and melancholic vocals of Speak & Spell era Depeche Mode and Human League, with the scorching guitars and emotional intensity of TSOL or Billy Idol.
Bassist C.C. Voltage explains, “The bass line came to me while I was working. I was able to use my break time to grab a cheap synthesizer and track the idea quickly on Garageband. The Silo was able to polish up the ideas in his studio in Chicago and Jiffy used my scratch vocal idea to create the rest of the eerie atmosphere of the song.” The new Autogramm single comes in conjunction with the announcement of their European tour dates this March.
The European tour will also be in support of their latest album Music That Humans Can Play released on vinyl and digital formats world-wide on Stomp Records (and Beluga Records EU). With their new album ,the band dedicated themselves to bringing in sounds from influences like The Fixx, David Bowie, Cheap Trick, The Boys, The Dickies, Jay Reatard, and Prince. The result is a decisively cohesive album that will fit in easily to the ’80s section of your record collection, with songs so well-crafted they probably deserve to be on the soundtrack of Fast Times at Ridgemont High.
Autogramm has a long standing connection to the art, punk, and skateboarding communities world-wide. Since their inception, Autogramm has performed throughout Canada, Mexico, the US, the UK, and Europe in notable venues such as London’s Lexington, Berlin’s Wild At Heart, and San Francisco’s Bottom of the Hill. The band members are: Jiffy Marx of Brooklyn’s Hard Drugs, Vancouver’s Night Court, and Blood Meridian; CC Voltage of Berlin’s Dysnea Boys, London’s Loyalties, and Vancouver’s Black Halos and Spitfires; Lars Von Seattle of Bread & Butter and The Catheters; The Silo of Vancouver’s Black Mountain, Lightning Dust, Destroyer and more recently, Chicago’s Spun Out.
What do you think of their new single?
