Amateurs show with Secretary Bird on May 22 a recommended pick on Rockinsider.com



One of the lesser known residencies going on in Los Angeles this month. The Amateurs sent me their CD in the mail the other week. Fantastic record. Very upbeat and fun. If you’re up for some new music I’d recommend this show.

Check it out

Speak Easy was reviewed on Littleradio.com. 4 out of 5 stars!



I wanted to somehow work the phrase “Easy like Sunday morning” in here, not because I’m reviewing the Commodores, but because it’s a great way to sum up the first full length release, Speak Easy, from Los Angeles based Amateurs. It’s a laid back, mellow album that meanders through several styles without getting lost in the woods. Drawing on influences such as T-Rex, Fleetwood Mac and David Bowie, they produce a style that is reminiscent of happy 70’s rock, without sounding derivative and clichéd. And then they throw in some country layers, dark soundscapes, dual guitars, a violin and a bucket load of emotional vocals. When you think you got their sound pinpointed down, the album morphs from poppy to dream-like. This is especially so with the track “Submariners” where the instruments take on a floating, underwater quality. Speak Easy successfully translates emotion in their instrumental tracks as well, slowly rising and building the structure until the whole track sweeps you off your feet. I recommend “Omaha Nights”, “Spectacular Fall”, and “Submariners”.

-Elana Rintala

http://www.littleradio.com/feeds/reviews/view/1060

Indie 103.1 FM in Los Angeles has been playing “Omaha Nights.” Call 877.900.1031 or click the box and fill out the form to request us!

KEXP 90.3 FM in Seattle has also been playing our music. Fill out the form or give them a call at 206.903.5397 and let them you know want to hear Amateurs! (Make sure you tell them you want to hear something off of Speak Easy.)

We’ve got a small 4 date tour of the Northwest starting Thursday May 3rd at Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco. Check the shows page for the full run-down. Hope to see you there!

We’ve got a residency every Tuesday in May at The Scene in Glendale and we’re playing with some really great bands. Check the shows page for all the details. Hope to see you all there!

It’s very exciting to finally be launching our new site because we can’t wait for you to check out the new record. You can listen to the whole thing using the snazzy player in the left column over there. If you can’t wait, you can even purchase the real CD before the release date via the link over there as well. We have graduated to 2007 and added a fancy mail list manager so it should be easier for all of us to communicate. Sign up in the right column. Browse around and let us know if you find anything odd.

Stay tuned to for many more updates over the next few weeks as we continue to build this thing up.

Cheers!