Autosuggest's ‘Not Yours’ Will Help You Re-Discover Yourself
Autosuggest. Photo supplied.
Sydney electronic rock trio Autosuggest’s latest single, Not Yours, is as snarling as it is seductive. Much like the toxic relationship it’s talking about, it’s hard to tear yourself away. The metallic, crunchy drums pulsate deep within your eardrums, while lead singer Alec Mallia lures you in with a masculine siren song.
The band’s announced their second album, Introhedonism, will be out later this year. Not Yours is Autosuggest’s 4th single of 2020, and it’s them putting a stop to the emotional wrestles their previous songs have been talking about. They’re starting again in their personal lives, free from the restraints that have held them back. There’s a renewed sense of freedom in their music, and it’s easy to get swept along in the sultry excitement of Not Yours.
Not Yours doesn’t sound like a song from 2020 - in the best of ways. So many bands are insistent on over-producing their music, and it loses all sense of character. In many cases, you could be listening to an AI production, because there’s no sense of fault or blemish. The beauty of Not Yours lies in the humanity. It’s abrasive, and it’s raw. Each drum hit is a labour of love, rather than another input into the algorithm. This song is human, in a period where more than ever, music is becoming an output, rather than a passion.
The song clearly takes its cues from the 80s, but has been updated for the modern times. Autosuggest count among their influences artists such as INXS and SOPHIE. It’s interesting hearing how bands can take influence from vastly different worlds, genres and time periods, and cause those sounds to coalesce. At what point do influences stop being about the sound of the music, and about the attitudes? Which comes first - the music or the influences? Not every sound has a predecessor, but everyone wants to compare new artists to those that have come before. Music is cyclical - and yet, artists like Autosuggest prove you can translate the sounds of yesteryear for a modern audience.
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Check out Not Yours below. There’s a sense of understated triumph to the track. They've escaped the toxicity of their personal lives, and it's showing in their music. They’ve got a more refined, distilled vision of their sound, and I can’t wait to see how that’s reflected on Introhedonism. Autosuggest are continuing to carve out a niche for themselves in the Australian music scene. It’s only a matter of time before more of the right people sit up and take notice.