Hollywood, Californians Awaken The Empire have fused together the essence that is alternative music with eletronica music to embed a source that is totally out of this world. The band discusses with me their all new EP “Awakening” and how it’s impacted themselves as a band and how it’s affected the fan base that they have grown to accept as their brand new family.
Your guys new EP “Awakening” has been released and you made it available for free download, why did you want to go this route?
Damien: We have always been more concerned with getting our art/message out into the world, than with making money. The Awakening EP was our first release, and we really just wanted to see what the response would be if we just put it out there…
What have the fans and critics said about the EP and it being what it is and being for free?
Shivan: The response has been absolutely amazing! All of the reviews from the critics have been overwhelmingly great!
Daryl: The coolest thing is that even though the EP is free, fans write us all the time, saying that they bought it on iTunes, just to support us!
Tell me about the writing process for it, what are your songs about?
Damien: I typically come up with the overall concept for a song, and then as a band we form it into the final product.
Why did you want to go with naming it “Awakening”?
Daryl: The Awakening EP is our first release, and it just feels like it’s the beginning of something huge for us. It’s phase 1 in an elaborate plan.
What about the album cover it’s the city skyline of some city is it the one you’re from?
Damien: We chose to put Los Angeles on the cover, because that’s where we’re from, and it’s where our movement started. The concept behind the cover art is an explosion of light and energy, emanating from within the city.
“Know Your Place” is the current single and music video you have available why did you go with choosing this particular tune and what’s the concept behind the video?
Damien: To be honest… We knew that we wanted to release The Awakening as a single on a larger scale, and by putting out Know Your Place first we gambled that it would buy us enough time to get signed, and build a loyal fan base… Luckily for us, it all worked out! We just shot the video for The Awakening with our amazing Director Chad Michael Ward, and it’s going to be released on November 1st! The concept behind the Know Your Place video is hidden within the video itself. We’re not saying that the video has secret/subliminal messages hidden in it…. but the video definitely has secret/subliminal messages hidden in…it.
Are you in writing mode for your debut full-length?
Jaymz: Yeah! We are actually going into the studio on October 17th with producer Erik Ron (D.R.U.G.S., Get Scared, Panic at The Disco) to record a bunch of new music! We aren’t exactly sure how we are going to be releasing it yet… It may be in the form of a full length album, or as multiple EP’s.
How about touring are you on the road at this moment or just kicking back?
Jaymz: Right now we are focused on writing and recording, but there are definitely plans in the works for getting us out on the road in early 2012.
You use alternative and eletronica as your genre of choice why did you want to go in that direction?
Damien: Our mixture of Alternative and Electronica is just something that happened naturally…
On your guys Facebook you put under record label “Burn The Records!” does that mean you’re flying solo and self-releasing everything or do you hope to one day get signed?
Shivan: Burn the Records! is the actual name of the label we’re signed to. The name is a play on words, meaning “Destroy the Evidence”. We have been so lucky to have the full support of a label that is being built around our band!
What is one thing about Awaken The Empire that everyone just “has” to know?
Damien: We are more than just a band. We are a movement… Watch closely or you may miss it.
by: Natalie Perez
