Just in...The New Empires: The New Empires

    I went to summer camp with Matt Brown, who is the songwriter and lead singer for The New Empires, new to the scene with their debut album, The New Empires, which I learned about through my brother posting them on Facebook. Perhaps "new" has a double meaning here, with the group's formation 6-7 years in the making, violinist Elise Zeigenberg and drummer Steph Hughes started playing with Matt in college in 2004. At the time they played some folk or Americana, what have you, while it seems they had particular interest in Irish folk, and after taking subsequent trips to Ireland, they met their future two additions, David and Ellie Henry. Finally, pianist Jeremy Weber joined as the late arrival in 2010 and the sextet was established. So, the combination of instruments they all brought to the table, with various backgrounds and stylistic intentions is what truly formed this new empire that is The New Empires.
    Having recalled even my brief time with Matt Brown, I knew him to be a gifted guitarist with a knack for harmony and songwriting. He was not interested in creating music that lacked originality or simplicity, loved using unusual chords or mixed meters. I may be describing that as more extreme than it actually was, but I was impressed even then, and that does not come lightly (which you might know if you read my blog!). Now, The New Empires is self-described as "giant-sized pop numbers accompanied by choirs of angels and a gypsy orchestra", which sort of fits, but really seems hyperbolic, and a bit faddish if you ask me; many bands like to make up their own terminology to describe their musical style (this used to be especially true back before MySpace changed it's interface and each band page had a place by their picture where they could put 3 or so words to describe their music--many bands not choosing typical "rock" or "pop" terms). Chamber Pop suits me as a descriptor, but Baroque Pop is close and seems to be more inclusive and the popular term, so I included it in the tags, but it is not Baroque like Vampire Weekend or Sufjan Stevens are; which have more period sounding instrumentation (harpsichord or something sounding ancestral to the oboe).
    The third and fourth tracks may be the best songs on The New Emipres, "Above the Door" and "The Psaltery"; such smooth melodies and nice vocals, especially since I'm not often a fan of falsetto (unless it is British, i.e. Coldplay, Muse or Radiohead). The only [slight] criticism of "Above the Door" is the last chord, which almost seems out of place, even though it has a nice timbre. The pizzicato on "The Psaltery" is really nice and at one point Matt Brown reminds me of the singer from Passion Pit or something. Actually he reminds me of Sondre Lerche and Jukebox the Ghost too, even though their voice qualities are different. "Exiles" has a really catchy chorus and I love the lyrics about L'Arc de Triomphe and all. Overall, I think the band hits their sweet spot in the softer tones instead of the more upbeat group sing-a-long style that some of their other songs are about, "Janitors" for example. I also wonder what religious undertones the lyrics take on, because some of their songs seem to be overtly inspired by Biblical themes (blood on the door from "Above My Door"=Passover, "The Psaltery", etc..) but that could be my bias, it could even be sarcastic in nature. I do not know and I would love to see some lyrics posted on Bandcamp like most bands do.
    I leave you with "Above My Door", over under 'Monthly Sample Tracks', which has a gorgeous violin solo in it (there is one phrase I wish the violin had ended on the 3rd of the chord instead of ascending to the root, but oh well their band their choice). Do check out the entire album on The New Empires Bandcamp website here. Enjoy!