The Empire Strikes the East Coast! Empire of the Sun at Terminal 5 - NYC

Two years, a burned out CD and hundreds of YouTube videos later, I finally got to see the otherworldly live experience that is Empire of the Sun, (not once but twice) as they made their US debut this past August. Although their first time in the US, Aussie natives "Emporer" Luke Steele (of alt group The Sleepy Jackson) and "Lord" Nick Littlemore (of dance-duo Pnau) are no strangers to the live show. They've been making musical magic since 2007 as EOTS, and released their debut album "Walking On A Dream" in fall 2008. Judging by the intense visuals of their cover art and the ultra-glam attire and scenery in their video's, you have to hope that they bring a traveling circus with them to their live shows as well. Trust me when I say they heeded my every expectation.    

They kicked off their 7-show circuit by lighting up Perry's @ Lollapallooza in Chicago on August 7th, before making their way to NYC for two, sold out Terminal 5 shows, the second of which I was lucky enough to catch. The entire show was magical. From start to finish the show felt like you were following your way through some epic adventure love story complete with all the creatures of Narnia, lights from some old school sci-fi junket, and noises & sounds from some uber cool pinball game. They opened with a favorite of mine, "Standing On The Shore" which (even in the photo pit), I was able to groove to. Other crowd favorites included "Half Mast" and "Swordfish Hotkiss Night" complete with some awesome metallic blue body-suits and fish masks. With enough costume changes to make even Cher jealous, it was hard to pick out our favorite pics. To see them all go here. Nearing the end of their 50 minute set they played "Walking On A Dream" which first beat out ignited the crowd into a dance frenzy.

Side project or not, I anticipate we'll hear more from these guys and hopefully get to catch them in the States again soon! If you don't already have it, make sure you go pick up their album "Walking on a Dream". Stic favorite's include: Standing On The Shore, Without You, and of course the ultimate summer jam, Walking On A Dream.