Following on from their Hollywood-sized teaser trailer and being announced as part of the Sydney Vivid LIVE 2013 lineup, Empire Of The Sun have now released the first single of their brand new album, Ice On The Dune.
Breaking half-a-decade’s absence between recordings, Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore drop their long awaited sequel to debut album Walking On A Dream on June 14th 2013, and have been releasing a series of cryptic online teasers for their new studio album in the run-up to its release.
All starting with a teaser trailer directed by Hollywood A-list director JJ Abrams, of Lost, Star Trek, and soon to be Star Wars fame. A noted fan, Abrams personally invited Steele and Littlemore to his Los Angeles base of operations, resulting in him and his Bad Robot production team bringing the band’s colourful vision to life in a short called Discovery.
Now we have the first aural sampling of the new album in ‘Alive’, the lead single to be lifted from Empire Of The Sun’s sophomore album, and it’s a reliable first cut that doesn’t mess with the dance-influenced synthpop formula that earned the duo eight ARIA awards, two BRIT nominations, and more than one million units sold worldwide of their 2008 debut. With big accessible hooks, streaked keyboards, and Steele’s ballooning falsetto, it’s easy to imagine it filling [up] festivals and stadiums…
With big accessible hooks, streaked keyboards, and Steele’s ballooning falsetto, it’s easy to imagine it filling the festivals and stadiums that Empire Of The Sun became accustomed to playing to in their last world tour. But it’s the band’s hometown of Sydney that will be the first to hear ‘Alive’, along with the rest of Ice On The Dune, as the album gets its official premiere as part of Vivid Live; playing two headline shows at the Sydney Opera House on May 30th & 31st.
Work on Ice On The Dune began over 18 months ago, when Steele and Littlemore reunited with the latter’s fellow PNAU half, Peter Mayes, and Jono Sloan in New York to begin pre-production on the new record. Steele has previously remarked about his excitement about finally releasing their second album as Empire Of The Sun, but also spoke of the pressures to match the success of Walking On A Dream.
“I had never experienced fame before, and I don’t think in Australia, people realised how many places this record travelled,” the former Sleepy Jackson frontman said. ”In the end what has driven us is the same as the first record, which is music that makes people feel excited and want to get up in the morning.”
You can hear ‘Alive’, the first single from Ice On The Dune below along with the dates for Empire Of The Sun’s album launch shows.
EMPIRE OF THE SUN – (AUS)
WORLD EXCLUSIVE ALBUM PREMIERE SHOW
DATE: 30 & 31 May
TIME: 8pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
TICKET PRICE: From $59
Vivid Live 2013 lineup
Kraftwerk
Empire of the Sun – world premiere of Ice On The Dune
Bobby Womack
Karl Hyde from Underworld (Australian premiere)
Heritage Orchestra performing Vangelis’ original Blade Runner score
Sounds of the South ft. Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), Megafaun, Fight the Big Bull & Matthew E. White
Live Transmission: Joy Division reworked
Sunnyboys
Cloud Control
C.W. Stone King
Gurrumul
Scott Walker
Future Classic Party
Goodgod Dancetera
Vivid Live 2013 Dates & Programme
May 24th – June 10th.
Tickets on sale to the general public on Wednesday 27 March, 9am – sydneyoperahouse.com/vividLIVE
For more details head to http://www.vividsydney.com/
Vivid Sydney runs from 24 May to 10 June. See here for more details.
LIGHTING THE SAILS
THE SPINIFEX GROUP
DATE: 24 May – 10 June
TIME: 6pm – Midnight
TICKET PRICE: FREE
KRAFTWERK – (GERMANY)
THE CATALOGUE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 (3D SHOWS)
DATE: 24 May – 27 May
TIME: 7pm & 9.30pm
VENUE: Joan Sutherland Theatre
TICKET PRICE: Tickets have been allocated via an online application process
EMPIRE OF THE SUN – (AUS)
WORLD EXCLUSIVE ALBUM PREMIERE SHOW
DATE: 30 & 31 May
TIME: 8pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
TICKET PRICE: From $59
BOBBY WOMACK – (USA)
AUSTRALIAN DEBUT
Presented in association with FBi Radio
DATE: 24 & 25 May
TIME: 9pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
TICKET PRICE: From $59
SOUNDS OF THE SOUTH – (USA)
FEAT. JUSTIN VERNON & MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE, SYDNEY EXCLUSIVE
Presented in association with FBi Radio
DATE: 1 & 2 June
TIME: 9pm & 4pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
TICKET PRICE: From $59
GURRUMUL – (AUS)
THE GURRUMUL PROJECT – WORLD PREMIERE
DATE: 28 & 29 May
TIME: 8pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
TICKET PRICE: From $69
VANGELIS – MUSIC FROM BLADE RUNNER – (UK)
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE, SYDNEY EXCLUSIVE
DATE: 26 May
TIME: 9pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
TICKET PRICE: From $59
BISH BOSCH AMBISYMPHONIC
AUDIO INSTALLATION OF SCOTT WALKER’S ‘BISH BOSCH’ (UK)
WORLD PREMIERE, SYDNEY EXCLUSIVE
DATE: 24 May – 2 June
TIME: Daily from 5pm
VENUE: Playhouse
TICKET PRICE: FREE
KARL HYDE (UNDERWORLD) – (UK)
DATE: 27 May
TIME: 9pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
TICKET PRICE: From $59
SUNNYBOYS IN CONCERT – (AUS)
DATE: 2 June
TIME: 9pm
VENUE: Concert Hall
SHOW NAME: as above
TICKET PRICE: From $59
Show & Film Package – Purchase a ticket to the Sunnyboys and receive a $9 discount to the World Premiere screening of the Sunnyboy! (Discount only applies when concert and film are purchased in one transaction)
LIVE_TRANSMISSION – JOY DIVISION REWORKED (UK)
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE, SYDNEY EXCLUSIVE
DATE: 29 May
TIME: 7pm
VENUE: Joan Sutherland Theatre
TICKET PRICE: From $59
‘THE SUNNYBOY’ (FILM) (AUS) – WORLD PREMIERE
Presented in association with Sydney Film Festival.
DATE: 2 June
TIME: 5.30pm
VENUE: Joan Sutherland Theatre
TICKET PRICE: $25
CLOUD CONTROL – (AUS)
ALBUM PREMIERE
Presented in association with FBi Radio
DATE: 31 May
TIME: 8.30pm
VENUE: Joan Sutherland Theatre
TICKET PRICE: $35
C.W. STONEKING (AUS)
DATE: 1 June
TIME: 7.30pm
VENUE: Joan Sutherland Theatre
TICKET PRICE: $45
MATTHEW E. WHITE – (USA)
AUSTRALIAN DEBUT
DATE: 2 June
TIME: 8.30pm
VENUE: Joan Sutherland Theatre
TICKET PRICE: $35
