Autolux -- Listen Up!

Posted on Aug 12th 2010 5:00PM by Kim Davis
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We're constantly getting turned on to new music here at Spinner HQ. Between our Free MP3 of the Day and weekly Free CD Listening Party, we hope you are too. To help further the cause, we're gonna bring you our personal must-hear music picks with Listen Up! -- Spinner's weekly spotlight on staff-approved artists who rock our world.

Drew Reynolds, ATP Recordings

Who: Autolux
Hail From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Why We Love Them: Summoning the very best of the '90s -- 'Census' sounds like a hybrid your two favorite Sonic Youth songs -- the trio returns after a five-year hiatus with their sophomore album 'Transit Transit.' Trading their rougher edges for a more refined sound, Autolux maintain an edge amidst the gloss with spooky vocals and characteristic Krautrock rhythms.
Essential Listening: 'Supertoys' (MP3 Download)
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Exclusive Q&A With Guitarist Greg Edwards:

What's Your Favorite Album Right Now?

Brian Eno, 'Here Come the Warm Jets' and Company Flow, 'Funcrusher Plu.'

Tell us about the first concert you ever attended.

Harry Chapin at the Hollywood Bowl. My parents took me. All I remember is the crowded walk up the hill to our seats -- lost in a sea of legs -- and the distant amplified sound in the air. I was kind of overwhelmed and I didn't really understand what a concert was. When we got to our seats, there was an empty seat next to me and I asked my parents if Harry Chapin was going to come sit with me.

What's your biggest vice?

Coffee and negativity.

What's the story behind the name of the new album, 'Transit Transit'?

They were just words I spontaneously sang over some music we were playing a few years ago -- just thoughtless sounds to fill out a melody idea. It was immediately obvious to me that we had the name for the record. At the end of recording the [album] [drummer] Carla Azar rediscovered that rough sketch demo the title had come from, and we turned it in to the first song on the record.

Who's the best musician you've ever met? Can you tell us the story behind the meeting and why it was a memorable experience?

Probably Steven Drozd from the Flaming Lips. The first band I was in toured with the Flaming Lips when Steven was just playing drums. I got to watch him every night and it completely rearranged my idea of how powerful and musical a drummer could be. That idea got rearranged one step further when I started playing with Carla. The amazing thing about Steven is that he is effortlessly musical with every instrument he touches, and he seems to be able to play anything by ear and always with perfect feel. But I guess everybody knows that by now. Back when I first met him, I felt like I had made an incredible secret discovery.