Amplifier | website | facebook | twitter | bandcamp |
By: Dave Cooper
Amplifier remain one of British rock’s best kept secrets. They’ve served up a decade of truly mind-boggling and pleasingly speaker-destroying rock, including their sprawling opus The Octopus, a record of startling variety and originality, the lengthy recording of which nearly drove them mad. Amidst the trials and tribulations that followed the release of The Octopus, they regrouped and delivered last year’s much-loved Echo Street, quickly followed by this year’s fuzzed-up ‘party album’ Mystoria. It’s been a rollercoaster couple of years. I caught up with Amplifier lynchpin Sel Balamir to ask him about the band’s new lease of life, the band’s inspirations, and where their restless muse will take them next…
(((o))): Mystoria was recorded very quickly – and unlike previous records you made a deliberate decision not to start recording until you’d honed and polished the material. How much do you feel that this decision was impacted by the band’s approach to Echo Street, which was also a more direct and concise album?
Sel: Well it’s the opposite of Echo Street really – Echo Street wasn’t written when we started recording it, so we just kind of fleshed it out as we did it – it was a bit of a hazy guess actually and we were lucky that it turned out as such an ace record. I wouldn’t play the same gamble again though. That would be foolish – so we decided to drill this record so it was easy when we went in the studio – no guessing. That’s why the record sounds live and exciting. Because it was live – and we were excited!
(((o))): As a result of this approach, there’s a distinct scarcity of overdubs on Mystoria. Do you think sometimes that there is a temptation for musicians to overuse the studio as a tool during the recording process? To spend a great deal of time experimenting and tinkering with the material in a way that perhaps doesn’t always serve it best?
Sel: Well – it’s just a different approach and a different style – all of our other albums were kind of done like that. If you make textural records that’s the way you do it – but we were more interested in making a record that was more about raw rock energy than textures. It was easy to mix – pretty much push the faders up kind of approach. Old School.
(((o))): You’ve described Mystoria as a “summer time rock record”, your ‘party album’ perhaps. You have also previously said that you really enjoy playing festivals. I sense that these two things are not entirely unrelated. Has playing festival shows informed the new material in any way?
Sel: Hmmm – that’s not really occurred to me in terms of content – but I definitely wanted to keep the record concise enough that we could play the whole thing in a reasonable festival slot – which is what we did.
(((o))): Mystoria as an album is undeniably euphoric, and yet several of the lyrics are quite dark. Do you feel that that’s a juxtaposition that is part of Amplifier’s make-up?
Sel: You only need to scratch the surface and we’re really just about the heart of darkness…
(((o))): Mystoria’s songs are all quite distinct in mood and style. Were there any songs from Mystoria that were harder to put together than the others?
Sel: Collating the album was hard, because what the idea of the record was changed and developed over the past couple of years – when I decided that I wanted it to fit on one piece of vinyl, that made everything have to become much more concise. If you ever tried to write a song you’ll know that writing short songs is really terribly hard. It’s taken me 20 years to hone the skill. Long songs are easy – a piece of piss.
(((o))): The ‘Space Ska’ of ‘Cat’s Cradle’ has certainly raised a few eyebrows. Is there any kind of music that is off-limits to Amplifier?
Sel: I love ‘Cat’s Cradle’. Anyone that can listen to that song and not feel good is clearly a replicant.
That’s the test that they should have used in Blade Runner.
(((o))): Around the time of Echo Street you had stated that the live shows you were playing may be your last, due to the fractured nature of the live scene and the expense of putting on shows. Do you feel anything has changed in this regard since then, for better or worse?
Sel: Nah – it’s still a disaster out there. Best not to worry about it. Do what you can. Focus on what you can afford to do. It’s a shame we can’t afford to tour in the Balkans.
(((o))): What can fans expect from upcoming live shows? Will you take the upbeat party vibe and, er, amplify it?
Sel: Ha – undeniably – lean and mean.
(((o))): The Octopus remains a firm favourite among your fans, but by all accounts the writing and recording of the album was exhausting for you. In all its sprawling diversity, how do you see the album now, looking back? Could it be Amplifier’s defining moment?
Sel: Well – I hope not – there’s plenty of defining left to do in this mind. I think it was let’s say a renaissance. I wouldn’t make a record like that again though. I’ve done it now. The good thing about The Octopus though is that it’s still ongoing, and I’ve been working on finishing the whole of The Octopus book with some artists. We did chapters 0-4 in Version2.0. I’m just finishing off the whole thing chapters 0-8. We’ll do the whole thing on box set vinyl with a 24” gatefold art span.
It’s going to be absolutely mega. That will be defining.
(((o))): When Amplifier came into being, were there any bands (or records) that you particularly looked to for inspiration? How much do you feel Amplifier’s mission statement has changed since the band’s inception?
Sel: Not really SoundgardenXNirvanaXPink FloydXBlack SabbathXMotörhead
Think we’re pretty much still on track…
(((o))): The band’s colourful and comically surreal online presence never fails to entertain. Some band’s promotional activity and contact with their fans can come off as grey and aloof: was your approach a reaction to that?
Sel: Actually – we prize our goofing around, and it’s best to just present yourself as you really are.
If you’re aloof and that works for you and your fans then good luck with it.
(((o))): You’ve stated that you’d like Amplifier to release a new record every year rather than take a long time working on each album. That’s an impressive goal – how achievable do you feel it is?
Sel: Well the next record Tripping With Dr Faustus is being finished off right now. There’s a lot of pots on the boil on the Swedish Chef’s Range cooker.
(((o))): And with that in mind, do you have any idea yet what we might expect from the follow-up to Mystoria? Some musicians feel each album is a reaction to the last one: is this the case for you as well?
Sel: Each one of our records seems to be a reaction to breathing air – however I pretty much know what the next record sounds like, so I can categorically tell you that there is NO heavy Dub on it.
(((o))): Do you have anything to add?
Sel: Long Live Ech(((o)))es and Dust!!!
Best.
