Well I never! Good news came in this morning from the HQ of Leeds post-punk outfit ‘Autobahn’ in the form of an announcement for a brand new single ‘Silver’ ahead of their third album, titled ‘Ecstasy Of Ruin’ which will be out via Tough Love Records on 28th April.
In addition to this exciting news, the band announced just six concerts:
28/04/23 – Leeds, UK – Jumbo Records
29/04/23 – Nottingham, UK – Chameleon
06/05/23 – London, UK – Shacklewell Arms
07/05/23 – Brighton, UK – The Hope & Ruin
18/05/23 – Paris, FR – Olympic Cafe
19/05/23 – Le Havre, FR – Foul Weather Festival
This new announcement highlights the fact that reports of their demise have been greatly exaggerated – the North has risen again. It’s been more than six years since their last long-player record, the rather good ‘The Moral Crossing’, which was released on 3rd November 2017, Leeds denizens Autobahn have re-entered the fray with the announcement of release of their third record, ‘Ecstasy Of Ruin’, which formats includes a limited edition of 500 white vinyl editions – Order yours HERE.
More than half a decade is both a long time and no time at all: forever changes while some things remain eternal… So it goes that Autobahn may have re-emerged with many of the hallmarks of their characteristic blend of industrial post-punk intact, but under the bonnet they’re a much leaner, more focused machine. Autobahn 3.0.
If 2017’s ‘The Moral Crossing’ was a record defined by its dramatic rhythm section, then it’s not insignificant that the 2023 incarnation of Autobahn arrives shaved to a four piece and sans their previous drummer. The change necessitates an evolution. Live drums have given way to drum-machines and sample-based percussion, and with it see the band reconfigure their typically blackened aesthetic into a hardened take on Electronic Body Music. As with their previous record, it’s an entirely self-produced collection, recorded between two self-built studios on a range of analogue equipment, the ghosts of their industrial forefathers haunting the circuits. Indeed, some of ‘Ecstasy Of Ruin’ was made with pieces salvaged from Martin Hannett’s legendary studio.
The forthcoming Brighton concert is being put on by local promoters Love Thy Neighbour and tickets for The Hope & Ruin performance on Sunday 7th May 2023 can be purchased from HERE.
The Brighton & Hove News Music Team attended Autobahn’s show at the Green Door Store back on 10th November 2017, read our report HERE.
