Autodrone
Interview by Leo Fox

(AeonElectron’s own Leo Fox asks local New York art rock favorites Autodrone about their career ambitions, the birth of the machine, and opening up for Montreal death metal legends Cryptopsy)

How much do you do what you do with Autodrone in hopes of creating a career and how much purely for its own sake?
Angel: I make art for arts sake. I try to avoid anything that can potentially run the risk of turning into a profession.
Jeremy: I live ONLY for pleasure.
Dennis: On a scale of 1 to 10-10 in answer to both. It's a dream I've been attempting to make a reality for many years...all while doing the 'day job' thing…a painful endeavor in itself.
Rachel: Creating a profession out of playing? I say half and half.

I have read that you have played with Cryptopsy- how did this come about and what was that like? What is your opinion of Cryptopsy and other Quebecoise metal bands like Voivod?
Angel: It was for CMJ. The crowd was really nice, and very responsive.
Jeremy: the fellas in Cryptopsy were very nice, not too much interaction with them, but when we asked, should we put our stuff over here (talking about our guitars and stuff) they said, "yes" or something like yes, maybe they said "no" to be honest, I forgot what they said and what we did.
That show was a strange one, it was a CMJ show, I remember, we kind of got tacked on to the front of the Century Media showcase at Don Hills in NYC. Upon our arrival, it became abundantly clear that not only were we the only band with females on the bill, but possibly they were the only females in the entire room. We found the audience to be honestly quite receptive on that night. Voivod have always been personal heroes of mine, for many years now, I don't own any of their CDs and I’m not familiar with any of their songs, but they play music, and I respect that.
Dennis: I think Metal is a beautiful thing. It keeps the world turning... makes the tides change. Gives me reason to live, breathe, and act irrationally on occasion.
Rachel: Huh?

Your Myspace page sites the Futurists as influences on your work. How so?
Angel: The Futurists invented noise music. They looked to the roar of machines and the sounds of the cities instead of being confined to the traditional conceptions of music.
"Ancient life was all silence. In the nineteenth century, with the
Invention of the machine, noise was born. Today, noise
Triumphs and reigns supreme over the sensibilities of men"
Luigi Russolo 'The Art of Noises' 1913
Rachel: Huh?

4 What can you tell us about the new CD?
Angel: I'm very excited about the CD. It took a really long time to make, and I'm very pleased with how it came out. And hey - you can dance to it!
Jeremy: I can tell you that the CD is the product of a lot of blood sweat and tears, mostly blood and tears as it was winter while we were recording it, at least it felt like winter the whole time, so not much sweat. The making of that CD cost us two band members, several producers, several studios, not to mention thousands (upon thousands) of dollars. Was it worth it? HELL YES! It’s good right?
Dennis: The diverse yet timeless sound on the new record makes it a great stocking stuffer! (For next year or the one after)
Rachel: It’s a combination of pop and anti-pop stuff.