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'The Automatic' otherwise known as 'The Automatic Automatic', in the USA and Canada[1], are a band who formed in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales but are now based in the capital, Cardiff. [2] They are influenced heavily by acts such as Jarcrew, Muse, Blur and The Blood Brothers, among others.[3]
Band members
The Automatic, as of 2007, is composed of:
★ Rob Hawkins (lead vocals, bass guitar)
★ Pennie (synths, keyboards, vocals)
★ James Frost (guitar, vocals)
★ Iwan Griffiths (drums)
History
1988-2005
The band in an early promotional shot for Not Accepted Anywhere
The members first met at Primary school, in 1988, and formed a band at the age of 15. This was without current member Alex Pennie, who was asked to join 5 years later.[4][5] Originally known as White Rabbit, they renamed themselves The Automatic because they believe that music is the antidote to "the automatic life".[6] They signed with B-Unique Records[7](home of Kaiser Chiefs) in their gap.
''Not Accepted Anywhere'' (2006-2007)
CEJ.
In November 2005, the band released their first single, "Recover", prior to the release of their debut album ''Not Accepted Anywhere'', this single however was not chart eligible since only 1,500 copies were released on vinyl and only 3,500 on CD. Also in 2005, The Automatic won The Pop Factory award for "Best New Band".
Monster the bands no.#4 UK Hit
On March 27, 2006, the band's next single, "Raoul", was released, reaching #32 in the UK Singles Chart. The third single, "Monster", was released on June 5, 2006 and reached #4, but entered the UK Singles Chart at #23 the week before based on download sales alone. "Monster" has also been re-mixed into a dance track by Fatboy Slim, and some football teams use the song as an anthem.[8] Keyboardist Alex Pennie has expressed his thoughts on football fans singing their song "Monster", and does not see it as a good thing, nor does he get any thrill out of them singing it, also stating "I'm not the biggest fan of football, I class it a waste of time," in an interview with MTV.co.uk [9]
The Automatic in Playmusic magazine
''Not Accepted Anywhere'', was released on 19 June, 2006, which they celebrated with a signing and performance in Oxford Street's HMV.
On July 17, 2006 shortly after the UK release of ''Not Accepted Anywhere'', the ''Raoul EP'' was released, containing a number of early songs and b-sides to ''Not Accepted Anywhere''. The EP also included the original versions of "Recover" and "Raoul".[10]
The Automatic have been heavily criticised for their follow-ups to their chart hit "Monster", which peaked at #4 in UK charts. The band have been accused of being a "one-hit wonders"[11] [12][13] ''Not Accepted Anywhere'' was also criticised for the tracks sounding too similar to one another. [14][15][16]
The fourth single was a full release of "Recover", and is actually a re-recorded version of the song which the record label felt to be a more fully-realised performance. Generally it is heavier in sound, features more synths from Pennie and a sharper guitar sound for Frost's solo.
16 August 2006 saw the band's second EP, titled ''Live at the 100 Club'', the EP was recorded at the 100 Club, in London and made exclusive to iTunes.[17]
The fifth single, a re-release of "Raoul", was released on January 8, 2007. The single fared worse than its original release, however received higher plays on MTV, Kerrang and other music stations.[18]
On June 26, 2007 the band released their debut album, ''Not Accepted Anywhere'' in the USA and Canada. This comes prior to their attendance at the Vans Warped Tour, 2007. Their first US single, "Monster", was released on April 24, 2007.[19]
Second Album, future Album(2007-present)
theautomatic.co.uk new July look
New Logo
We want to just make it sound rawer, make it sound heavier because we felt the first album got pretty poppified and it was quite rushed so we didn’t get to do a lot of the ideas we had. So hopefully we’ll get a bit more time to make it more of an album where you have to listen to the whole album. You know like with some albums, you only listen to one track but you feel like you have to listen to whole album. We want it to be like that,” says the sticksman of the direction he thinks the whole band should make out with each other. “I think it’ll be more in the potty direction, more in the vein of Foo Fightery type , kind of thing but keeping in what we do now. We don’t want to be perceived as this pop band which we do at the moment, we seem to be a bit pushed into this corner, but when you come to our gigs you sort of see that we’re a rock band.—Ukmusic interview[20]
So far the official details on a second album are limited; however, new songs have been showcased on the NME tour, including "Steve McQueen" and "Revolution" [21]. Also in ''playmusic'' magazine it is suggested that the sound on the second album will change. "Our record is a bit too pop for my liking," says Alex Pennie in the interview, however they have said in other interviews that there will be no drastic changes in the genre for the second album. They have also stated that they will start writing this album when they go out to America, for the Vans Warped Tour 2007, and it is expected to be released early 2008.[22]
[23]
[24]
On 26th July 2007 theautomatic.co.uk was changed for the first time since the UK release of Not Accepted Anywhere, from the Not Accepted Anywhere Theme into a new lighter flash aided design, the design may or may not have relevance to the forthcoming Untitled Second Album scheduled for a late 2007/early 2008 release. A US site was also released, the style only slightly differs with The Automatic UK site featuring a new logo, the USA site uses the logo from Not Accepted Anywhere.[25]
Live performances
The Automatic on the front cover of NME.
Rock Sound
The Automatic are well known for there extremely energetic on stage performances, the constant microphone swinging from keyboardist Alex Pennie, as well as crowd surfing from guitarist James Frost. As well as these features the band are well known for their performances of Gold Digger [26]. The band as well as covering this have taken to covering The Talking Heads classic, Life During Wartime [27][28]. In more recent times the band have performed Personal Jesus, originally by Depeche Mode, however the song is performed in the same manor as Marilyn Mansons 2004 cover.[29][30] The Automatic's most notable touring appearances are at Reading Festival 2006 [31] and NME Awards Indie Rock Tour 2007[32], and their upcoming Vans Warped Tour 2007[33].
TV, radio, and online appearances
The Automatic's infamous GMTV Performance.
The band has appeared on television and radio a number of times; notably, they were first ever band to make a return performance on The Friday Night Project.[34] They have also appeared on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge, playing "Monster" along with "Gold Digger".[35]
In the spring of 2006, Frost and Pennie destroyed some of the equipment whilst performing "Monster" on GMTV. Although the band have not been expressly banned from performing on GMTV, there were threats of legal action from a crew member who received a glancing injury during the act.[36]
The band have been featured in a number of magazines, the most notable being NME, Kerrang, Playmusic, Q Magazine, and Rock Sound
On November 16, 2006, Alex Pennie appeared as a guest on panel show, ''Never Mind The Buzzcocks''.[37]
On January 9, 2007, Robin Hawkins and Alex Pennie stood in on the Zane Lowe show on BBC Radio 1, hosting a two hour show, with tracks from Frank Turner and Viva Machine, The View, and several other artists.[38]
On January 11, 2007 the band appeared in Habbo Hotel UK.[39]
Awards
The Automatic Collecting their award in 2005.
The first factory award they received was on December 3, 2005 for "Best New Act".
In 2006, The Automatic won the "Best Performance Award", as well as "Rock 'n' Roll Excess Award" (after their GMTV performance earlier in the year) at The Pop Factory Awards 2005, and performed "Raoul" both at the ceremony, and also performed at the prior press launch in Hard Rock Café, Cardiff.[40]
Discography
Albums
| Date of Release | Title | Label | UK chart peak | UK sales | Singles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 June, 2006 | ''Not Accepted Anywhere'' | B-Unique Records | #3 | Gold | "Recover", "Raoul", "Monster" |
| Spring 2008 | ''Untitled Second Album '' | B-Unique Records | "Steve McQueen" |
References
1. The Automatic AutomaticThe Automatic being promoted as 'The Automatic Automatic'
2. "If only success was Automatic" by Claire Rees, ''icWales'', October 14, 2005, retrieved November 10, 2006.
3. The Automatic MyspaceInfluences of the band.
4. NME 19 May 1998
5. The Automatic at HayStackThe Automatic WIENER
6. "The Automatic interview" by Nat Davies and Susie Wild, ''BBC Wales'', 2005, retrieved January 4, 2007.
7. B-Unique Records
8. "Top 10 Football Chants of 2006" ''BBC Sport'' 2006, retrieved February 9, 2007
9. Don't Mention Monster''MTVUK News'' 2006, retrieved April 3, 2007
10. Raoul EP
11. MonsterThe Automatic 'Monster'
12. Soundgenerator.comThe Automatic Review
13. beatsurrender.comReview Liverpool NME Tour
14. Raoul Re-Release Chart Blog
15. Guardian Art.Guardian slates Not Accepted Anywhere.
16. Drowned In Sound Review of Not Accepted Anywhere
17. iTunes/Coke The Automatic Live at the 100 Club
18. Raoul Re-Release
19. The Automatic Automatic Not Accepted Anywhere USA Release
20. UkMusicUkMusic interview further details on the second album
21. New Songs On Tour''NME News Thread'' 2006, retrieved February 9, 2007
22. HighSoc.com Interview With The Band
23. NME 19th May 2007 page 35
24. Tour.net Iwan Interviewed By Warped Tour.net
25. theautomatic.co.ukThe Automatic re-designed website.
26. Gold DiggerThe Automatic Live Performance Of Gold Digger, Originally by Kayne West.
27. Life During WartimeThe Automatic Life During Wartime Cover
28. SXSW Life During WartimeSXSW Festival Youtube Performance
29. Personal Jesus Cover of 'Personal Jesus' YouTube video
30. Personal Jesus Marilyn Manson's Cover, similar to The Automatics cover
31. LastFM Past Events2006 Tour History
32. NME News ArticalNME Indie Rock Tour Line-up 2007
33. Vans Warped Tour2007 Band Lineup
34. The Automatic IMDBThe Automatic Filmography
35. Live Lounge CDDetails and Track Listing for BBC Radio 1 live lounge cd.
36. "The Automatic Facing Legal Action", ''Contactmusic.com'', August 2, 2006, retrieved November 10, 2006.
37. Alex Pennie on N.M.T.BKeyboardist Alex Pennie Appears on Never Mind the Buzzcocks
38. Zane Lowe On Holiday"Robin Hawkins and Alex Pennie stand in for Zane Lowe", January 9, 2007
39. The Automatic In Habbo Hotel
40. Pop Factory Awards 2006
External links
★ Official website
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