Mailer Daemon’s latest single, Automation (featuring Sage) seamlessly blends 80’s electronica with contemporary hip hop to produce a genre-defying work of musical brilliance.
Mailer Daemon, with the help of singer / producer Sage, unties threads of cyber-punk, 80s electronica and modern hip-hop and stitches them together seamlessly on Automation.
With cyber-punk synths featuring prominently in the track’s production, if the vocals were removed one probably wouldn’t be shocked if they were told Automation was taken directly from The Terminator soundtrack. However, the hip-hop vocals are pure 90s, making it difficult to pinpoint the core inspiration of Mailer Daemon’s work.
This ambiguity probably gives more to listeners though, and assists in heralding Mailer Daemon one of the most unique new artists in the hip-hop game right now. It’s a struggle to distinguish exactly whom to compare him to – Kanye West and SBTRKT both jump to mind, but neither fit perfectly. In the end, comparisons are fruitless, and arresting yourself completely to the song is all the more rewarding. And what a song it is.
Automation is short, clocking in at just two and a half minutes, but it packs a massive punch. What the track lacks in subtlety it makes up for in liveliness – and it never eases on delivering either.
It is reminiscent of an anachronistic 80s film’s computer software given life, and would be best enjoyed both at a house party and right after a nostalgic re-run of Blade Runner.
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Singer/producer Sage contributes a smooth element to the tune, bouncing off Mailer Daemon’s acidic tongue with a glitchy chorus hook that will worm its way into your sub-conscious and sit there, zapping away at your thoughts like a computer virus.
There is also a slight oriental influence that runs throughout Automation too with some spooky mandolin work – a testament to the seemingly endless creative reservoir that Mailer Daemon drinks from. The track is confirmation of Mailer Daemon’s audacity as an artist. Having nearly a decade of experience in the Australian music scene, his extensive experience is not to be taken lightly.
High expectations were placed on his highly anticipated Ronin 3 LP and, if Automation is anything to go by, it looks like audiences will be treated to a fantastic record – short and sweet, Automation is a perfect teaser for even bigger things to come.
