Automatic - Black Box [Video]

We are super excited about the stellar new album Is It Now? by LA trio Automatic, out now on Stones Throw. If you haven’t listened yet, the opener “Black Box” may convince you to stay for the entire ride. The band calls this post-punk, but with its eclectic blend of synths, grooves, and sharp commentary, future punk might be the better name.

Singer and synth player Izzy Glaudini gives us some background about the song:

The title ‘Black Box’ refers to the black box in a crashed plane. The repetitive synth is supposed to suggest a plane gliding as it crashes/ an alarm distress call. I was listening to the Leonard Cohen album The Future a lot around the time the lyrics were written. It's a pretty straightforward critique of people that have sold out on a large scale, specifically within creative industries. Thierry Mugler said, “art used to tell money what to do, now money tells art what to do” and the world is a less interesting place because of it.

Listen to "Black Box," our Song Pick of the Day, on Apple Music, Spotify, or watch the animated video below:

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