INSIDER

Let's start at the end it's a really good place to start.

Map of an Imaginary Place and Hymn of Aten are wonderful tracks. Characteristically Amplifier. I've compared this Manchester band to Soundgarden in previous reviews. That's not really fair. Cornell is Cornell and Amplifier have clearly found there own sound.

Sometimes bands spring at us out of nowhere. You walk out of a gig thinking wow that support was awesome. You (or at least I) have a prejudice staunchly based on ignorance, that the support will be a poor band ... time for a couple of beers and a bit of craic. How wrong I usually am. Sometimes spectacularly: I recall first seeing Tesla backing Def Leppard, Kings X backing ACDC; you know the sort of thing. Anyway, Amplifier is definitely a band that leaps out of the "yeah i'm sure they're good but y'know gotta get back to the Tool (or whatever)" and grabs you by the nads and makes you sit up & listen.

Strange Seas of Thought just hits the spot. I would love to see these guys live and wait to see at what point Matt Brobin swaps his arms over for a fresh pair.

Music is a lot like food & wine, one man's meat is another man's poison. But not Poison (now there was a band I really just did not get). I reckon with Amplifier you get the best prog rock outfit in the UK at the moment.

There are a couple of tracks I really don't get in this album: Elysian Gold and Whst is Music. But for me I remember the highlights. This album has 3 really great tracks. THat's a great ratio in my books. Maybe I'm a glass half full person but for those 3 this album should be in your collection.

First of all I don't think this is nearly as good as their debut. Having said that I love the sound these guys create, all that bottom end with that dark mood. I also like the singers vocals a lot, which simply means when you add it all up this one's a winner regardless of how much better the debut is. Some feel that this band isn't very progressive. I honestly could care less about that. If they're on this site I rate them by how much I like the music, not by how proggy it is. I'm not smart enough to rate music that way.

"Gustav's Arrival" is one of the better tracks and a great way to start the album. It's actually only one of two instrumentals, so give them credit for making this the first song on here. It starts off spacey followed by some feedback then a full sound. The bass rocks in this one. Very powerful track. "O Fortuna" is faster paced but not as heavy to open. It's heavy now. Haha. Vocals a minute in. The drumming is fantastic ! This one kicks hard. "Insider" is my favourite song on the album. It opens with a nice guitar line before the power comes in. Vocals join in. Amazing sound, I love the bass. "Mongrel's Anthem" features some really crushing guitar passages. The drummer is beating the hell out of his drumkit. The vocals are especially good here. "R.I.P." is a good tune but seems to lack something.

"Strange Seas Of Thought" has this cool guitar intro as vocals and drums join in to great affect. That guitar melody returns 2 minutes in as drums pound. He cries out "Is there anybody out there !" I like this one alot. "Procedures" opens with samples of someone doing things and then they start typing as the guitar comes in and mimics the typing. Very cool sound. Riffs follow and vocals join in. Such a catchy track. "Elysian Gold" has some meaningful lyrics while the drumming dominates. Great vocals and a powerful ending. "Oort" is really a 1 1/2 minute intro for the next track. We get heavy, spacey soundscapes that end with a beat as it blends into "What Is Music ?". Vocals arrive a minute in. Nice heavy sound. "Hymn Of The Aten" opens with a brief spacey section then TOOL-like drumming comes in. This is dark and heavy as vocals arrive. Crushing sound before 2 minutes. Excellent tune. "Map Of An Imaginary Place" has this incredible low end sound, lots of bottom end. Vocals are reserved, and it settles down when he sings. Nice contrast.

Nice album.

Amplifier - 'Insider' 2.5 stars

More or less the same.

After the remotely interesting EP prior to this album, I personally thought it would give this band some hope. All it did was make the band sound more polished, but still has the same useless grit regarding compositions. The space element is more abundant on this one but it really isn't actually integrated into the music, rather just thrown in the beginning and end of some songs, truly unappealing.

The worst is certainly not over there. With some truly retro sounds that remind me of Metallica, a band of the past, I hear a song in the style of...Greenday. Yes, Greenday, as low as a prog band can get pretty much. The lyrics on this album are also some of the worst I have heard in a long time in just about any genre, but rap of course.

This is a band that I have given a chance and probably one that I will completely forget about given time. Speaking of time, this band has been a complete waste of it. They do not merit any mention alongside bands like Porcupine Tree, Dredg or Oceansize.

After a wonderful first album and an equally great EP, Amplifier released this second effort called Insider!

And with the same line-up, Sel Balamir produced and composed this collection of alternative prog-rock songs with an even more saturated sound, strong drums and great bass lines. The lyrics are so philosophical as ever, with some humor always implicit on them, and the style of the band remains more or less unaltered in comparison with the first album, leaving a bit the most experimental side of the band showed in And The Astronaut Dismantles Hal.

Sadly, the album lacks a bit of variety in the long term and the compositions are also not so outstanding this time, despite a pair of truly great and inspired moments. So although Insider is a worthy follow-up of the incredible Amplifier, it's impossible not to feel a bit of disappointed after repeated listening.

Best Tracks: Gustav's Arrival (incredible instrumental opener), O Fortuna (one of Amplifier's classics and a very stimulating mixture of alternative rock, progressive structures and even country influences) and Strange Seas of Thought (great guitar riffs)

Conclusion: Insider was the confirmation that Amplifier was here to stay, showing moments of true talent with songs like O Fortuna. Sadly, in comparison with the almost perfect debut of the band this second album feels a bit repetitive, hollow and with some uninspired moments in the form of songs like the boring What is Music?

Nevertheless, it's an album that I will continue to hear in the future and a worthy addition to the very interesting Amplifier's discography.

My rating: ***