Thursday, February 10, 2011

Empire! Empire! (I Was a Lonely Estate) - 2007 When The Sea Became A Giant


Band : Empire! Empire! (I Was a Lonely Estate)
Album : What It Takes To Move Forward
Release Year : 2009
Genre : Emo / Indie

Tracklist :
01. Our Love Has Made Us Pariahs
02. You Have To Believe That Life Is More Than The Sum Of It's Parts, Kiddo
03. Lilly, I Have Something Important To Tell You
04. They Will Throw Us To The Wolves
05. K.O. K.O. (The Most Of My Worries Are The Least Of Your Concerns) 

The key word that comes to mind when listening to When the Sea Became a Giant is light. Everything is light. The vocal delivery is a deep reminder of the roots of emo, where a different kind of melancholy built its empire. The guitars let off an air of innocent intensity. The bass a resonating backdrop to a story never told. It’s been heard before, but never so well.
Empire! Empire! (I was a Lonely Estate) is an interesting collection of what seems to be a close family making music together. And we all know close families together making music makes a good time. Empire! Empire!, however, seem to try to touch upon something deeper, something more root-ful. The basic mechanics of emo are all displayed here. For example, the first song “Our Love has Made Us Pariahs” demonstrates many conjunctive moments between light but full band explosions and guitar matrimony. The guitars delve into clean, but in their own way very lyrical, engrossing leads. All which create a vacuum strong enough for the bass to fulfill.
What is most gripping about this release is that the recording was done by one man, Keith Latinen, with a guest vocal on the last track “K. O. K. O.” In a way you can tell, it is made up to be something more of a personal self confession that a collective truth. The whole of When the Sea Became a Giant is consistent and familiar as you listen to it, which in a way makes it unique from other emo efforts that could be comparable.
This release was independently released, however, it has caught the attention of many online music boards, including this one, obviously. What sells them so well is simple. They are playing something that has been hushed in the history of music. They make emo the genre it’s supposed to be. Many may argue they are hailing to a different genre, however, to the likes of this journalist, it is emo.





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