1. Ampere - Secret Hallways
2. Ampere - Sleepwalkers
3. Funeral Diner - I Was the Sword
I will not pretend to be overly fond of Ampere. Their spastic, chaotic style, while brimming with energy and a strong sense of technicality, never stays with any one idea long enough for me to grasp on to it. In fact, I have a fun and easy-to-use formula on the subject:
Orchid - enjoyability = Ampere
And while their side of this split is surprisingly listenable given their track record, that's not why I'm posting it. The reason why is because the other side of the record is possibly the best thing Funeral Diner has ever done, which is too bad, considering this was also their last release before breaking up.
"I Was the Sword" is quite frankly a brilliant song, somewhat reminiscent of On the Might of Princes at their best. It builds through some sharply darting guitar lines and chaotically rhythmic drumming to a blisteringly emotional and intense climax, breaks it down, and then finds a new and effective way to do it all over again. This is 'epic' in every sense of the word, and should be considered a must-have by any fans of the band.
Ampere/Funeral Diner
