Ampere
All Our Tomorrows End Today
The PCC. It's a local community center that has housed shows for the blossoming hardcore scene south of San Francisco. This venue proves that sometimes, there's nothing better than seeing an intense screamo band play in a small room that the night before housed a flower arranging class or an AA meeting. Having never been there before, I was treated by a wonderful show on July 30 featuring
Sinaloa,
Ampere, Death Spares Not the Tiger, and
Comadre. I was so impressed by Ampere's music I decided to pick up their most recent CD.
This CD though is only 10.5 minutes, and on a 3" CD. In short, this band is more fast and furious than Vin Diesel. Their most similar peers are Love Like...Electrocution and maybe a more chaotic Hot Cross. The style is defined by quick punches of what would appear to be a verse of chorus if it weren't for the fact that none of the songs have a typical song structure. Most of the songs have one part that could be a full intro or verse in a longer song, but usually are the primary sections of the song. Another reason for these parts' odd appearance is that the time signatures and riffs are completely wacked out. It's not a brutal math metal affair like a Dillinger Escape Plan or Psyopus, but the CD has moments of impressive guitar and mostly cool time signatures. While watching this band live I ended up counting lots of the sections and thinking to myself, this is pretty off kilter. They do an amazing job of making the time signatures flow really well and be catchy at the same time. Most bands that insert time changes end up garbling the flow but Ampere does a great job of mixing sections together, an ability that I attribute to the guitar and bass. The riffs and lines are incredibly catchy and memorable even though they never really last for more than a few bars. It's this kind of scattered, unexpected instrumentation that gives Ampere their best moments.
However, most people will be thrown off by the abrasiveness and abruptness of this album. A typical emo/screamo fan will find this to be standard fare, but those looking for a more palatable foray into technicality should check out The Fall of Troy or Thrice. The length of this album is unfortunate, and makes this more forgettable than a band like Hot Cross that has a more expansive sound but it's still a good album. This band is reserved for elitists, intense musicians, and sadists looking for a quick 10 minutes of angular bliss.
Favorite Track: Woodlawn
