Empire of the Sun- We Are The People

Image by Chromewavesdotorg via Flickr

This song reminds me of the 80's, Labyrinth and Fraggle rock. Rather than just being consumed by Barbies and Cabbage Patch Kids, I had insomnia set in at age 5. I bounced around MTV and HBO, as well as reading anything I could lay my hands to help me get through my nights. My childhood was atypical, to say the least.

And this song is certainly not typical. Luke Steele isn't your typical vocalist. And Nick Littlemore isn't your typical producer.Together they create an experience, not a pop song. Visuals and sound melding into a thing of beauty to enjoy and explore deeply. This song is very rock oriented, yet.... you hear the longing. The vocal-centric aesthetic is rather haunting, layered and surreal.

They aren't new, Nick is from Pnau and Luke is from The Sleepy Jackson. Together they make... as cheesy as it sounds, magic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a47Y1lCRHlM

The video was inspired by El Dias De Los Muertos and filmed entirely in Mexico. It is a story, not just music set to random imagery. While I often enjoy such things *cough* this is different.
Of course EMI is idiotic and won't let me embed the music video. I seriously recommend watching it in HD, at any rate. For just the music click: Empire of the Sun- We Are The People (Lala.com)

According to Pandora.com some of the attributes are:
basic rock song structures
heavy use of vocal harmonies
extensive vamping
a clear focus on recording studio production
paired vocal harmony
minor key tonality
The vocal-centric aesthetic
acoustic rhythm guitars


And the lyrics are beautiful:

We can remember swimming in December,
Heading for the city lights, in 1975
We share in each other
Nearer than father
The scent of a lemon, drips from your eyes

We are the people that rule the world
A force running in every boy and girl
All rejoicing in the world
Take me now

We lived an adventure
Love in the Summer
Followed the sun till night
Reminiscing other times of life
For each every other
The feeling was stronger
The shock hit eleven
Got lost in your eyes

I can’t do well when I think you’re gonna leave me, but I know I try
Are you gonna leave me now
Can’t you be believing now
(repeat)

Can you remember and humanize,
It was still where we’d energized,
Lie in the sand and visualize like its 75 again

We are the people that rule the world
A force running in every boy and girl
All rejoicing in the world
Take me now
We can try

I can’t do well when I think you’re gonna leave me, but I know I try
Are you gonna leave me now
Can’t you be believing now
(repeat)

I know everything about you
You know everything about me
Know everything about us
(repeat)

I can’t do well when I think you’re gonna leave me, but I know I try
Are you gonna leave me now
Can’t you be believing now


(repeat)
We can try

(photo from my own collection of work, entitled Desolate Angel)

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