Amusement Parks on Fire - Press Release
“There’s ample adolescent earnestness on the self-titled debut album by Amusement Parks on Fire, an English band that sings sentiments like ‘All you ever know is what they sold you.’ But it’s swept up in a whirlwind of guitars and guitar noise, or silenced in somber crescendos for strings and piano. This band prefers ambience to finger-pointing.” - Jon Pareles, The New York Times; January 2005
Hailing from Nottingham, England, APoF’s early demos swayed none other than Portishead’s Geoff Barrow into signing the band to his Invada Label in 2004. No small feat considering Barrow is normally “rock-shy,” yet he was attuned to the band’s sweeping epics enough to realize this was more than just your average rock band, more than rock itself, but a force of its own. A giant sweeping effort, made by one uncommon young man—this was something rare.
“This debut is not the prog of tedious old arseholes like Pink Floyd, but the shimmering beauty of Kevin Shields, with a side-kick of…Sigur Ros and Spiritualized. Lick ‘Venus in Cancer’ with its crashing layers of fractured noise tissue, or ‘Wiper,’ which sounds like the sun rising on the greatest night of your life.” - NME
Feerick is no longer alone in his pursuit. After assembling his band—Daniel Knowles (guitar), Jez Cox (bass), Pete Dale (drums—Amusement Parks on Fire won over the normally staid UK crowds last year with shows that quite literally blew people away with sheer volume and abandon. Sharing bills with bands like the Secret Machines, the Dears and Kaiser Chiefs, APoF began to build its current legend as a breathtaking live act, the uninitiated staring agape at these lads, wondering where the hell they came from.
“For anyone who’s seen APoF live, this record consists of the key elements of those…indefinably LOUD performances, interspersed with a couple of almost classical interludes that reinforce the genius-in-a-bottle waiting to be unleashed.” - DrownedInSound.com
“…I doubt anyone’s ears can claim to have received such a mélange that is equal measures sonic battery and aural beauty as Amusement Parks on Fire in recent times. Quite simply, this is a stunning debut record, a triumphant fanfare that heralds the arrival of yet another precocious young talent…” - DrownedInSound.com
What, no TFW quotes? For shame! Keep watching for upcoming live review and let our very own Armchair Anarchist quote you happy!
Amusement Parks on Fire are about to tour as joint headliners with Scarling, including a night at Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms (May 15th). For full tour see dates below:
Apr 30 2006 8:00P - First Floor - Derby
May 2 2006 8:00P - Concorde 2 - Brighton
May 3 2006 8:00P - Barfly - Birmingham
May 4 2006 8:00P - Fuzz Club - Sheffield
May 6 2006 8:00P - The Forum - London
May 7 2006 8:00P - Waterfront - Norwich
May 8 2006 8:00P - Academy 3 - Manchester
May 10 2006 8:00P - Barfly - Glasgow
May 11 2006 8:00P - Global - Newcastle
May 12 2006 8:00P - Joseph's Well - Leeds
May 14 2006 8:00P - Fleece - Bristol
May 15 2006 8:00P - Wedgewood Rooms - Portsmouth
May 16 2006 8:00P - ULU - London
May 19 2006 8:00P - Lido - Berlin
May 20 2006 8:00P - Pop Up - Leipzig
May 23 2006 8:00P - Paradiso - Amsterdam
May 25 2006 8:00P - Nouveau Casino - Paris
May 26 2006 8:00P - VK - Brussels
May 28 2006 8:00P - Dot To Dot - Nottingham
Jun 2 2006 8:00P - 333 - London
Aug 12 2006 8:00P - Summersonic - Tokyo
Aug 13 2006 8:00P - Summersonic - Osaka
