Volume CXXXIII, Number 16 February 15, 2002 f

Autobahn kicks into high gear
JAIMYE BARTAK
STAFF WRITER

Unless you have major hearing or social problems, it should not have escaped your notice that as of a couple weeks ago, Autobahn is back. After a semester's hiatus, the triumph of the last two annual "Battle of the Bands" pulled it together for a deafening, sexually invigorating two-set show at Ladd House, featuring all five veteran members-Chris Bail '02 (lead guitar and vocals), Colin Thibadeau '03 (bass), Dan Buckley '02 (rhythm guitar), Ethan Bullard '03 (drums), and the very sexy Sarah Ramey '03 (vocals)-and a new collection of original songs.

From left: Colin Thibadeau, Dan Buckley (top), Chris Bail, Sarah Ramey, and Ethan Bullard. (Henry Coppola, Bowdoin Orient)

But this was not exactly the Autobahn everyone remembers from 2001. Clearly, the band that once dabbled with "Communist rhetoric and regalia" and even brought its provocative gig to the uninspired capitalists of Colby (a heated event that was reportedly a "logistical nightmare" for the band's security team, headed by Mike Warner '02), has refined itself. This year, Autobahn is moving away from its classic image to begin more experimentation and development. So far, the results have been impressive.
If you were fortunate or well-connected enough to push your way through the wall of die-hard (and in many cases, inebriated) fans two weeks ago, you were undoubtedly a witness to Autobahn's muted cohesiveness, which is rarely overwhelmed by the volume of their performance. Over break, the band officially reunited for a series of rehearsals in the wooded seclusion of nearby West Bath, where the members could drown themselves in their sound and a disgustingly excessive amount of breakfast foods (in the opinion of this reporter). All members agree that the reunion went smoothly: "Chris is still the guilty dictator, Colin the lackey, Ethan is a constant pain in the ass and Sarah gets kicked out of the band almost on a daily basis," commented Buckley.

More importantly, the members were introduced to the new songs that Bail had composed over the hiatus. When I caught up with Chris to ask him about this, he was cooling down from an intense session of pinball, stretching and sipping a frosty purple Gatorade.

"As a songwriter you have a complete picture in your head and you know exactly how you want it to sound, but conveying that message to others…can be really frustrating," he commented. For the most part, however, Bail feels that his songs have worked well with the talents and styles of the other Autobahnos. Buckley confirmed his satisfaction: "Although at first listen some may be quick to dismiss them as Radiohead or Pixies rip-offs, you can't deny that, taken together, they have their own original sound and feel to them."

And according to Bullard, the added vocals from Ramey have "provided the band with a sense of matured sexual expression in what has traditionally been a band of four male jerk-offs."

Thibadeau agreed, "My name is Colin Thibadeau. I am in the band."
Though Ladd was an unquestionable success, Autobahn is looking forward to recording their first 6-track EP in the studio this spring. Bail, throwing his voice into an ad-hoc but telling British accent, summed up the band's ambitions for originality and success this semester: "I think people really appreciate live music here because there's such a profound lack of [it], but I really don't want to go down in history as a crappy cover band."