Now with their long-awaited second album Symmetry out September 16, they’re ready to cement their status as one of the country’s brightest new stars. Combining the arena alt rock of The Killers with the bombast of 30 Seconds To Mars and emotional power of OneRepublic, it’s the sound of everything clicking into place for the band as both songwriters and independent artists.
“Symmetry is defined as ‘beauty as a result of balance or harmonious arrangement’ and we felt like that’s where we’re at as a band in terms of our relationships and in our music,’” explains frontman Jeremy Fowler. “It feels like everything is aligning and the pieces of the puzzle are falling into place at this point of our journey.”
New Empire’s journey started back in 2006 when Sydney school friends Jeremy and drummer Kale Kneale met guitarist Pete Gillies and former bass player Sam after high school (Sam was replaced by Kyle Lane this year). They began writing songs and playing gigs around Sydney under the moniker of Freedom 1 and quickly learned some shows could be more painful than others.
“At our second ever show, there was a massive beach ball in the crowd and someone launched toward me,” recalls Jeremy, who’s laughing about it now. “It hit the mic stand, which smashed into my face and my mouth started bleeding. Everyone was just cracking up and I just wanted to cry but I realised this is rock ‘n’ roll.”
As luck would have it, their courage under fire caught the attention of their soon-to-be manager Andy Mak (a respected producer/engineer who’s worked with Silverchair and Boy & Bear) who was in the crowd that day.
With their live reputation growing, they recorded two EPs, before they were forced to change their name because “an old American duo who’d released twenty albums” already had it. “People were going ‘I got your album on iTunes!’” says Pete, “And I was like ‘we don’t have an album nor is it on iTunes. They were like ‘it’s pretty different to what I expected.’”
With the money they earned from gigs and various day jobs (which included being a teacher, a park ranger and a Boost Boy), the lads released their debut album Come With Me in September 2008, selling 13,000 units to date.
They spent the next 18 months touring Australia in a 15-seater bus, living in each others’ pockets and playing more gigs, festivals and schools than they can remember. “We totally kitted the bus out,” recounts Jeremy. “We put a timber floor in and put our own sound system in. We’d lift the tail gate up and we'd have mad speakers in it playing our CD and we hung merch signs off of it, so it turned into a merch store.”
After racking up more than 130,000 kilometres, the band set their sights on their sophomore album. Initially, they spent a few weeks at Byron Bay’s 301 Studios before dividing their time between The Grove Studios and Silverchair bassist Chris Joannou’s studio on the Central Coast.
“We had an amazing time at Chris’,” says Jeremy. “There was a log fire in the control room, so someone would be recording in the morning, someone else went and collected wood. It was a real organic experience. It was great to record in different places, because it just kept refreshing us.”
Well, that and spontaneous Nerf gun battles, the Grove’s quad bike track and the amusing sight of Joannou on his ride-on mower through the studio windows. “We’d have to stop recording when he rolled by because we were cracking up so much,” recounts Pete.
If their debut portrayed a refreshing take on energetic pop-rock, Symmetry ambitiously ups the ante and broadcasts it in high-definition widescreen. Produced by Jeremy and Andy Mak, the album fuses fist-in-the-air anthemic rock with enough heart and hooks to command home stereos and stadiums alike. From the rousing climax of ‘Give Me The World’ to the victorious rocker ‘Worth The Wait’ to the slowburning ‘Ghosts’, it’s the essential next step in New Empire’s evolution.
“It’s definitely more diverse and experimental in nature,” confirms Jeremy, the band’s principal songwriter. “It’s a lot rawer and rougher. We left some mistakes in this time.”
Most impressively the lads have done it all on their own terms without leaning on a label. Instead, by working tirelessly and assembling an A-Team of talent around them, they’ve found strength in symmetry.
“We’ve been able to keep all our creativity and call all the shots,” says Jeremy. “Things have just been able to grow step by step. Our manager came in at the right time and each piece of a puzzle that a label gives you has happened as we’ve grown ourselves. It’s about building a team that shares the same vision and ideals, so it feels like a family.”
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Tightrope
New Empire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I think of all the ways that you might have tried
Then I realize, it's good to be wrong sometimes.
Found another crack in my ceiling,
I took another glance and it disappeared
Fear can be bold, but courage takes it all.
And would you lie to me, (just to change your mind)
'Cause in a heartbeat you open up my eyes
The hardest part is giving up
You can find me here at the circus,
I walk another tightrope to watch me fall
Then I realize, it's good to be wrong
You could have lied to me (everything's alright)
And would you lie to me, (just to change your mind)
'Cause in a heartbeat you open up my eyes
The hardest part is giving up
Keeping your balance is easy
When you are sure of the promise
That you'll never fall.
You could have lied to me (everything's alright)
And would you lie to me, (just to change your mind)
'Cause in a heartbeat you open up my eyes
The hardest part is giving up
You could have lied to me (everything's alright)
You wouldn't lie to me, (just to change your mind)
'Cause in a heartbeat you open up my eyes
I guess I won't be giving up.
The song Tightrope by New Empire narrates the struggles of being in a relationship that seems to be on the verge of ending. The first stanza starts with the singer lamenting that it has been twenty-seven days since he last spoke to his significant other. He reflects on the various ways that she might have tried to communicate with him but failed. However, he admits that sometimes it is good to be wrong. In the second stanza, the singer finds another crack in his ceiling but remembers that fear can be bold, but courage conquers all. He then goes on to state that you could have lied to him, but he would rather not give up on the relationship.
The chorus is a plea to the significant other. He asks if she would lie to him, and if she would, then just to change her mind. He acknowledges that she has the power to open up his eyes in a heartbeat but that the hardest part is not giving up. In the bridge, he refers to his life as a circus, where he walks tightropes and falls but still picks himself up. The singer then describes how keeping his balance is easy when he is sure of the promise never to fall.
Line by Line Meaning
27 days since we've spoken,
It's been 27 days since we last spoke and I've been thinking about all the different ways you might have tried to contact me, but sometimes it's okay to be wrong.
Found another crack in my ceiling,
I noticed there's a new crack in my ceiling and when I looked again, it disappeared. Fear can seem strong and overwhelming, but it takes courage to overcome it.
You could have lied to me (everything's alright)
You might have told me everything is okay when it's not.
And would you lie to me, (just to change your mind)
Would you tell me something that's not true just to make yourself feel better or to change your opinion?
'Cause in a heartbeat you open up my eyes
You have the power to make me see things in a new light, instantly.
The hardest part is giving up
Sometimes it's easier to give up than to keep trying, but giving up is the hardest part.
You can find me here at the circus,
You can find me in this difficult situation or circumstance, where I feel like I'm walking a tightrope and might fall.
I walk another tightrope to watch me fall
I'm taking another risk, walking another tightrope, just to see how it plays out.
Keeping your balance is easy
It's easy to keep your balance when you know and believe in the promises made to you.
When you are sure of the promise
When you are certain of what you've been promised.
I guess I won't be giving up.
Despite the challenges and the difficult situation I'm in, I won't give up.
Contributed by Bella R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.