After Googling whether Alexandra Palace indoor arena has air conditioning, spoiler alert, it does not, I admittedly had fears about attending Empire of the Sun’s opening night during a record breaking heatwave. I needn’t worry, the Australian dance act's opening show had all the frills to make it more than worth the sweat.
An Empire of a Sun show is a portal to another realm. World building has always been central to the duo, whose music spans many genres from EDM, pop and psychedelic rock. Their universe is largely inspired by sun worshiping civilisations, inflected with the aesthetics of 90's sci-fi and Japanese cinema.
During their opener, an unreleased track called Desire, we are immediately transported there. Spaceship-like visuals and giant heads, seemingly washed ashore from distant lands, frame a band clad in sequins and capes, while bonsai trees are held up like offerings to the gods. Leading the pack is an ever-excessive Luke Steele, rocking a samurai headset and a modified Fender.
Their albums span four chapters of lore: from voyages of discoveries in debut album Walking on a Dream, battles with the villain Shadow king in Ice on the Dune, right up to rebirth and spiritual awakening in most recent album Ask that God. The setlist had hits from across the discography, but the cadence leant more to this last release.
From the newer songs, Television and Ask that God are standout performances. The former unexpectedly broke into a Eurodance style drop, accompanied by strobes that wouldn’t be out of place in a rave, and the latter opting for a broody, emotional build, as Steele stood like a god in a white cape, heaven like graphics behind him.
The classics definitely still invoked the biggest reaction from ‘Empyreans’, with We are the People being a clear highlight. It was gimmick galore for this track, with confetti cannons and the dancers in full disco ball suits, but it was the song itself that made it epic. It summarises what makes an Empire of the sun gig so memorable, their ability to lean into spectacle without it ever overshadowing the music.
