"Whether it's purposeful or not, there is a cool irony in the choice of name for the Saskatoon indie rock trio AutoPilot, whose members work hardest at making sure their sound matures and evolves.
For singer-guitarist Marlon Harder, the band's remaining founding member, AutoPilot's mandate has always been hands-on creation of music that reflects the band's ideas and abilities.
After the band's birth in 2003, they independently recorded and released the CD When You Were, which Harder describes as 'basically power chord rock or stoner rock.'
'It was reflective,' he says, 'of what we were thinking and able to do as musicians at the time.'
When You Were was followed by The All Divided, a more stark, mature effort that was both a purposeful move forward but also a natural maturation. It was also released independently. With pop-influenced choruses and quiet, moody guitar parts, it's a sound Harder is quite content with. For AutoPilot's next work, he hopes the sound will continue to change.
'What we want to do is see how many different sounds a three-piece band can create, but while also staying minimalist... We use a lot of guitar effects and that kind of thing,' Harder says, adding he and his bandmates will likely experiment with introducing new instruments for the next CD.
Harder says the band's sound is crafted at least in part, by sound made from a violin bow drawn across the strings of an electric guitar a la Jimmy Page.
While there are no Led Zep comparisons, Harder says AutoPilot has been compared to Modest Mouse or Smashing Pumpkins, and it's members are influenced by Nirvana and Sigur Ros.
Harder says the band writes about a variety of subjects, but also doesn't shy away from expressing their opposition to the war in Iraq, as well as other political topics such as global warming and the Middle East.
He says all of this evolution might be hard for some passive fans to appreciate, but adds that true AutoPilot fans have so far shared the band's need to change. And it appears they've had some interest within the industry of late. Thanks to an eastern booking agent, the band is working on a tour to the Maritimes later this year.
'What we have always wanted to do is evolve and grow and do something different... we are lucky because a lot of our fans have pretty much grown with us,' says Harder, who works as a day cook at a Saskatoon restaurant.
Interest has also come from college/community radio and CBC Radio, as well as filmmakers who are considering using their music for films in production this year.
The band has also recieved a bit of new energy thanks to the addition of bass player Shelby, who was added in November (2005). 'It's always a good idea all band members are eager to hit the road, Harder says.'
'Before you start a tour, you want to make sure everyone's into and puts everything they have into it.'"
