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Jamiroquai Gets His Daft Punk on in New Song Aptly Named ‘Automaton’

After seven years away, evidently off on some intergalactic mission, Jamiroquai has returned to planet Earth with a new song and the announcement of his eighth album. Both are called “Automaton” and the album is out March 31. According to a press release, the whole project — his first since 2010’s Rock Dust Light Star — was borne out of facing the reality that humans are evolving into soulless cyborgs who no longer know how to feel. “The inspiration for Automaton is in recognition of the rise of artificial intelligence and technology in our world today and how we as humans are beginning to forget the more pleasant, simple, and eloquent things in life and in our environment including our relationship with one another as human beings,” singer Jay Kay says. And to really drive that point home, the new song and accompanying dystopian video borrows heavily from Daft Punk in its Tron-indebted synths, vocoder vocal effect, and, you know, all that stuff alluding to robots. Except, unlike Daft Punk, Jay Kay’s famous spiked helmet now lights up and moves in reaction to sensory stimulation. The future is fierce.

Jamiroquai Returns With New Song, ‘Automaton’