ANOTHER ROUND WON'T GET US DOWN

Auto!Automatic!! are a math rock band from the US (where most math bands seem to be from). This is so far their only album. Made up of a trio of guitar/bass/drums, there are some electronic elements to the music once in awhile. There is also a post-rock vibe as well as indie/alternative influences. Basically this is melodic math rock with great drumming. There are three short electronic tracks with no proper titles. All three are different and good. Three of the songs on this album you can stream here on PA. There are no vocals.

"Samurai Showdown At The University Of Tampa" starts off sounding like 1980s U2 meets electro. Some overdubbed percussion enters and then leaves the mix. Then the song changes to some great melodic math rock. Over halfway it really starts to rock hard for awhile. The numbers in the title of "4182333461...Dance!" are supposedly a phone number somewhere in Canada. This is one of the better songs. The bass really stands out here. This track is made up of a number of different sections, all of them join each other almost flawlessly. "E-Break" is a repetative track that features lots of start/stop playing. Over halfway switches to some kind of instrumental indie.

"The Party Beat" has a riff on guitar that starts out sounding very 1980s American pop/rock or country. Before long it gets mathified. "A!AA!! @ A/A, Eh?" is another song that has multiple sections that all fit together. Some drastic tempo changes near the end. "That's Some Sick Mouth And Knee Coordination" is a highlight for me. Very memorable and catchy guitar playing here, including more of that '80s pop/rock/country sound I was referring to earlier. The song goes in a few directions before coming back to the catchy playing again. "Immediately Upschteined?... Ish Don't Think So" begins with a trip-hop style beat and some post-rock style guitar playing. The bass gets more active and some cymbals can be heard. Guitar and bass gets more melodic with the electronic beat still going.

After 3 minutes the tempo increases and then drums soon enter with some steady hi-hat. I like the way this song flows, it takes it's time to slowly build up. Later on some almost metal guitar playing before the trio goes into what sounds like a metal band trying to play punk. I'm no math rock expert by any means but I think this would be a great place to start with this type of music. Like most math rock there is all kinds of angular twists and turns, but this kind of math rock is a little more melodic and catchy than most. I wish they would release another album in the future. I'll give this a 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.