New Music: Autoheart – Denial

I’m embarrassed to admit that I’d not been that familiar with Autoheart before hearing the Heartlands album. I’m making up for lost time, and so should you.

On Denial, the band – Jody Gadsden on vocals, Barney JC on guitars and bass, and Simon Neilson on piano and keys – bring a sunny indie rock touch to illuminate what isn’t an easy emotional experience, as the lyrics detail the inability to be yourself with someone, but also be adrift without them. Love can certainly be overwhelming, and so is its end, when that occurs.

The lyrics occasionally compare love to sickness, with many references to the heart – apt, as the melody is as pacy as a heart beating fast, as the trio’s arrangement looks to White Lies and The Lightning Seeds at times, indie rock with a pop groove, and perfect singalong music.

Says the band about the track’s lyrics, “Denial is taking the angst and making it danceable… cos, sometimes you have to.”

In the wake of Heartland’s release, Autoheart head out on a massive 36-date North American tour in two legs, the first kicking off on the 5th of September in Tampa, Florida.

Heartlands is out now via the band’s own label, O/R Records, and you can listen to it on SoundCloud, Spotify, and YouTube Music. The band plays a short series of UK dates in the middle of their American tour this October – head to Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram for venue and ticket details.