Autogramm, synth-driven power-poppers from Seattle, Chicago and Vancouver, have just released their latest single on Sweden’s Beluga Records. The vinyl seven-inch single features the band’s newest composition “Diana” and is backed with the song “Licht Aus”, a cover song by the 80’s 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.
European Dates:
Sat March 16 NL – HAARLEM – SCHLACHTHUIS
Sun March 17 NL – GRONINGEN – VERA
Mon March 18 BE – BRUXELLES – LE CHAFF
Tue March 19 FR – PARIS – LA MÉCANIQUE ONDULATOIRE
Wed March 20 DE – KARLSRUHE – ALTE HACKEREI
Thu March 21 DE – KASSEL – SANDERSHAUS
Fri March 22 DE – BOCHUM – WAGENI
Sat March 23 DE – FRANKFURT – DREIKÖNIGSKELLER
Sun March 24 DE – BAYREUTH – SCHOKOFABRIK
Mon March 25 DE – LEIPZIG – NBL
Tue March 26 DE – DRESDEN - CHEMIEFABRIK
Wed March 27 DE – BERLIN – SCHOKOLADEN
Thu March 28 DE – HAMBURG – MS HEDI
Fri March 29 NL – ZWOLLE – ONDERGRONDSE
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). The album has already graced the pages of international press like Exclaim, Under the Radar, Goldmine, Austin Town Hall, Visions (DE), Musik Express (DE), Happy Mag (AU), and Heatwave (UK). With their new album Music That Humans Can Play 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. Their last album No Rules climbed to #3 on Radio 3, and charted for five months at college radio in both the US and Canada. The new album has already seen support at X92.9 Calgary, WFMU NYC, Underground Garage NYC, The Rock 94.9 Toronto, KEXP Seattle and Xray FM Portland and climbed to #1 in Canadian college charts. 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. Music That Humans Can Play was recorded in Vancouver BC during the heatwave of August 2022. Somehow, between visits to the beach, barbecues, and a newborn baby, the band laid down ten tracks at two sweaty studios on Vancouver’s Eastside. The result is a blissfully cool album with music that will appeal to all listeners, from record store snobs, garage rock slobs, and even synth-pop heartthrobs!
