Album Review by Mark Bayross
Dorset trio Get Amped trade in the kind of upbeat punk-pop that got the likes of The Offspring and Blink 182 from teenagers’ bedrooms and into stadiums so the fact that they are English does come as a bit of surprise.
Debut album POSTCARDS FROM HELL, despite having a misleadingly aggro title, is unusual in that it’s relatively lengthy at 16 tracks and makes a valiant attempt at varying the sound from the standard jump-up-and-down riffarama. New wave keyboards creep into GOD OF THE ZOMBIES as do trip-hop beats here and there (see the minute long interlude DOUGAL’S DIT), while the faithful cover of The Police’s WALKING ON THE MOON makes for a breath of fresh air in the middle of the album.
On the minus side, there is a whiff of Busted / McFly about some of this, especially when you get to the clearly-for-laughs closer TOKEN XMAS SONG, and the suspiciously Yank-friendly accents do grate before long, but you have to give the band credit for trying something different from the norm.
Plus, glancing at their tour schedule, you have to admire a band that plays an entire week of shows in Shanghai at this early stage of their career!
