Amplifier return with their sixth and most definitive album to date, Trippin’ With Dr Faustus, due for release via Rockosmos this June 30th.
First track Kosmos instantly delivers Amplifier’s calling cards of massive riffs with lyrical sentiments that reach far beyond space, time and the limitations of ones, zeros and polycarbonate manufacturing. The story of Faust is more relevant than ever in the 21st century.
In stark contrast to the compact kidney punch that was 2014’s Mystoria – Trippin’ With Dr Faustus, like all epic journeys, is in no rush to let the plot unfold and spill out its secrets. ‘Each child is a child of circumstance’ summarises frontman Sel Balamir.
The genesis of the idea of TWDF lies neatly in the heart of the song Silvio – originally written in the period around 2011’s ‘The Octopus’. ‘Silvio didn’t make it onto that behemoth double album, ‘it didn’t really fit in with the Album’s universal themes.’ But the ideas lurking in ‘Silvio’ persisted and soon made their own bed. “Who doesn’t want to make a record about our relationship with The Devil? The ultimate baddy…’ Silvio was very specifically the story of Faust, albeit renamed in reference to Italian Faustian politico Berlusconi, and thus became the template for the rest of the album.