Back in the sweet old days of the Twin Towers and the first season of Survivor, there was one name that all Houston hipsters could count on: Jody Hughes. A one-man electrodancepunk revolution, Hughes took to stages wearing enormous silver spacesuits and sang Motley Crue and Sonic Youth songs through a Vocoder to his own massive synth beats. He was a total smash there, but then he left for LA and spent a handful of years making music in the sun before relocating to PDX last year. Now, his new band, Autotopia, is starting to make the rounds, with a gig at Ground Kontrol (511 NW Couch, w/Mise en Abyme, Misadventures of Two) this Saturday night.

There’s no Vocoder or cover of “Home Sweet Home” in Hughes’ latest incarnation, but Autotopia sounds pretty sweet, based on their myspace tracks. Like the Books, they’re not scared to mix banjos and synths, and Rebecca Stillman’s voice sounds slightly futuristic (like how Stereolab might sound, if they were still remotely relevant). I have a feeling we’re going to be hearing a lot about Autotopia in the future, so go ahead and consider this a Mercury “I Saw Them When” show.