Album Review
Empire Of The Sun Walking On A Dream [Virgin] Twisted pop from Australia, via space.
You can quite often judge an album by its cover. Australian duo Empire Of The Sun provide a prime example, their debut Walking On A Dream boasting the kind of audacious photo-realistic art that was last seen advertising ‘80s high fantasy flicks. (Pnau man Nick Littlemore – ‘Lord Littlemore’ in this incarnation – even holds a glowing orb in homage to David Bowie’s Goblin King).
It’s part of a wider, equally fantastical concept involving costumes, characters – The Sleepy Jackson’s Luke Steele is ‘Emperor Steele’ – and a plan to film the band visiting native cultures around the world. Those videos will then form a feature film, the loose plot of which will involve the two protagonists transforming into animals in a bid to relieve the world of sadness.
If it all sounds dangerously self indulgent, then that’s why the album’s such a pleasant surprise. Walking On A Dream is the year’s neatest, sharpest pop album so far, filtering the best bits of ‘80s pop and soft rock into a glorious whole. At its core is the dynamic of a great duo: Littlemore is an Elton John-approved wunderkind producer with a gift for lush, technicolour electronics, Steele is the man with a gift for heartbreaking melody and a unique, throaty vocal.
Together, they’ve made an album to delve deep into. Opening track Standing On The Shore has an instantly infectious riff and the title track is made for radio. But the further you get, the more nuanced the music becomes, culminating in the dreamily epic Without You. The worst thing you could accuse them of is being the first post-MGMT band, but in Luke Steele’s words, “MGMT drop the ball with their costumes. They do their soundchecks in shorts and shirts. Our concept is born – we live it.” (9)
- 17.02.09
