It’s difficult to reconcile the struggle that went into Autocamper’s new single, especially considering how upbeat and effortless it sounds. “We’d only recently written it,” says band cofounder Jack Harkins. “Wrestling the guitar parts out was the most challenging part of recording the whole album.”
“Proper” is the latest delectable dip into What Do You Do All Day?, the U.K. group’s upcoming debut, available July 11 via Slumberland and Safe Suburban Home. And though it hails from Manchester, Autocamper’s modestly ambitious jangle pop has more in common with Scotland’s Vaselines and Orange Juice than Oasis, the Stone Roses or any of the more “virile” rock acts from its home city. So perhaps it’s no coincidence that the new album was recorded at Glasgow’s Green Door Studio with Scottish producer Chris McCrory (Catholic Action).
Continuing his assessment of “Proper,” Harkins mentions its “deliberately—and, hopefully, delightfully—moronic big chorus à la the Yellow Balloon/Left Banke … The song is an exercise in optimism and remembering the good times as honestly as possible, with all the uncertainties and vulnerabilities attached.”
We’re proud to premiere Autocamper’s “Popular.”
—Hobart Rowland
