Amplifier

15.12.09

Over the next couple of days we'll be sharing with you our personal picks from the year, these compliment the Amplifier's Top Twenty Albums of 2009 - a list of the albums we feel were the best artistically.

Today's list comes from Stephen and is followed by our release Of The Week and a free download;

Amplifier Staff Picks 2009
Stephen (Mr Business Manager)

Album
Being a sucker for a good melody I can't go past Lawrence Arabia's Chant Darling. From the first time we played it at Amplifier Towers I've been sold. Also seeing James Milne play the songs unaccompanied earlier in the year underlined what amazing songs these are and how in a totally stripped back environment they still work.

Overall 2009 was an amazing year for kiwi releases. Trying to pick the final 20 was a difficult task when compared to earlier years. Personal favourites also included Tourettes' Who Said You Can't Dance to Misery, Optimus Gryme's Eclipse LP and Stroke - Songs for Chris Knox. 

Song (and biggest smile inducing moment for 2009)
Coconut Tree - track 1 from Wild Bill Rickett's album John Dryden. One minute and ten seconds of pure gurn inducing happiness that instantly took me back a few decades to being a toddler playing old Harry Belefonte 78's on my Auntie's gramaphone. It restored my faith to know that people are still writing and recording songs like this. 

Worst
Ears. More specifically my ears. Which don't work as well as they used to. This meant that I wasn't able to get to many gigs for the year. I can now understand why you should wear earplugs. 

Moment
Watching the sales roll in when Fat Freddy's Drop's Dr Boondigga and the Big BW was released in the last week of May. Up until then it was looking like being a very lean year with the Global Credit Crisis/Recession/Depression hitting hard. In two days we did the equivalent of a normal month's sales. Our courier couldn't believe the mountains of packages that were going out the front door. From that point on the year improved and coming to the end of 2009 we've seen sales exceeded 2008. 

Sign That Your Getting Old
J. Williams forum page on Amplifier. What language are J's fans talking? I don't understand....

Release Of The Week
Bad Energy - Tropic of Scorpio

New-wave rapper Coco Solid and underground axeman Sam Moore (The NeverEnds, Skeletor) join forces to make the psychedelic future duo Bad Energy.

Their debut, Tropic of Scorpio is a swampy electro-punk record combining a joint weakness for both 90's girl-grunge, laidback stoner anthems and themes of a restless internal life.

Over 2009 the duo recorded an outburst of tracks. Coco went beyond her signature mic and stepped behind keyboards, drums and guitar for the album.

Tropic of Scorpio was produced and mastered by Sam Moore who also plays guitar, bass, keyboards and drum machines. The results are tripped out synth tributes, DIY bangers and a punk Coco remix, singing about everything under the sun.

Free Download
dDub - We Are The Ones

The dDub crew are doing what they do best, hitting the summer beaches, touring our beautiful country, performing cranking live shows over the next couple of months.

They've also been recording and you can road test We Are The Ones their latest single for a fortnight (from Dec 10th) free thanks to the band.

Have a great day
Ed