About this user
Amplifico are an emotive piano/acoustic driven, jazz-tinged alt-pop/folk/rock 4-piece from Edinburgh. Insanely difficult to categorise really. Their tunes are quirky, sweet, epic, ethereal, endearing, soul baring, striking and danceable all at the same time. Their lyrics are both heart on sleeve and tongue in cheek. What holds it together like a super-strength glue is without a doubt the voice and the haunting heart felt melodies. Think Tori Amos, KT Tunstall, Muse, Ben Folds & Fiona Apple meet a rock musical, with the emotive vocal intensity of a female Chris Martin meets Kate Bush or Ella Fitzgerald and you're maybe getting close. Their inspirations lie in everything from Michael Jackson to DJ Shadow to Broadway musicals to Radiohead. They are a mixed bag to say the least.
Estranged in the remote satellite that is the Edinburgh music scene, with no manager, record deal or funding as yet, the band aren't waiting around for a miracle cure to clear their once apparently gloomy musical future. Through the internet, people power, home recording and a fighting 'never say never' drive to succeed in making a living from music, the band have taken their careers into their own hands. And slowly but surely it seems to be working a treat. Word is spreading. They already now boast high profile fans in the likes of chart toppers KT Tunstall and Nizlopi
On hearing Amplifico support her at a gig in edinburgh, KT Tunstall fell in love with the band and Donna's voice; Donna has consequently featured as a backing vocalist on KT's forthcoming live album/DVD, supported her on tour, joined her onstage to sing together and even stars in one of her music videos.
KT's huge, ever dedicated fanbase have also started to take the band under wing and there are talks of the whole band supporting KT on tour in the not so distant future.
A feature on National Public Radio in America (brought about by a Boston BBC journalist hearing the band on a podcast) saw their website hits explode within minutes. They were inundated with emails and guestbook entries, and their online music sales rocketed with hundreds of purchases coming in from across America in a matter of hours; certainly an amazing feat for an unsigned band who home record, design and manufacture all their releases from their bedrooms. With this overseas audience now starting to exceed their uk following, the band needed an innovative new way to bring the Amplifico experience to them without having to find the financial means to travel there in person! So they started their own podcast show, Amplificast, taking the listeners wherever they may be, to the studio, rehearsal room and on the road with them. Although in its infancy, the show has proved a hit already with hundreds of subscribers across the globe, and this figure is growing daily. Their very regularly updated band blog documenting their musical journey in a heart on sleeve style has also proven to be a massive hit with thousands of visitors checking in on the news per week. Through new online media avenues, Amplifico are certainly breaking down the barriers between audience and artist affording fans a unique insight into the inner workings of an unsigned band finding their feet on the mysterious path to musical success.
As well as securing some magic cd and download sales, Amplifico's two home recorded EPs have gained only critical acclaim from national press and radio (incl. Radio 1, BBC Radio Scotland, Beat 106) being reviewed in the same columns alongside major mainstream artists. This was despite their own release being burned onto CD-R with home printed packaging!
Admitting freely that they have taken their home recording abilities to its limits, Amplifico are now busy back in the studio with outside producers in an attempt to take their sound to a new level for their debut album. Hundreds of donations have been secured from people across the world to make this financially possible - the fanbase support for this unsigned band has been truly overwhelming. A brand new demo previewing tasters of their debut album is now in circulation and is already receiving glowing feedback.
