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Empire of the Sun's debut offering of electro-pop experiments and dancefloor daydreams is well timed indeed, arriving just as the buzz surrounding MGMT's "Oracular Spectacular" has started to recede.
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Sadly, the intrigue and theatricality wane midway through "Delta Bay" and never return.
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Dec 13, 2011This is the sound of the Noughties – electro enough without being harsh, interesting without being over-cool, quirky without being weird. Empire Of The Sun have cracked the perfect blend of fond reflection and sexy new frontier frisson. If this is what the future sounds like, then it's going to be beautiful.
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Walking on a Dream initially sounds as familiar as montage music in an HBO midday movie, but it will haunt your dreams.
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Much of the album bathes radio-friendly funk-rock in a kind of Balearic after-glow--it conjures that feeling of bittersweet triumph many will have felt as last night becomes this morning, the conquering of a dark that is now needed if sleep and recovery from such an act is to be possible.
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MojoThe opening tunes are strong, but in the later half mannered singing and pretentiousness bring back memories of the Thompson Twins. [Mar 2009, p.110]
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It's obvious that they've spent a while cultivating a specific look, but they seem to have only spent half of that time on the album.
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They're silly but their songs demand to be taken seriously, just like Prince, Ultravox and Bowie. And yes, they're like MGMT--in that they're great.
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The album's surfaces gleam, but its flower-power proselytising never quite dispels the notion of Empire of the Sun as MGMT copyists with pretensions.
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Although Empire tries mightily, they collapse underneath too many ideas before the record is even half over.
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Unfortunately, despite the well-developed '80s image, the music emulated is not anything worth reviving.
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Q MagazineHis latest spin-off project sees Steele's musical wanderlust pay dividends. [Mar 2009, p.98]
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Their debut sounds like Europop on Special K.
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Dec 13, 2011When they are on, they are very good, as their relaxing – yet strangely dance-worthy – grooves seem almost effortless. Yet, way too often, the duo simply bite off more than they can chew, meaning that when they are off, a 2nd listen almost seems like a chore.
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I applaud the duo's unpredictability but wish they would calm down a bit.
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Dec 13, 2011Is Walking On A Dream the sound of things to come then? Clearly not. Empire Of The Sun's grand ambitions are certainly worth applauding, but unfortunately they amount to nothing more than a cold and pale facsimile of the superior conquests of others who have trod these lands before.
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Uncut'Half Mast' and the 'Without You' are exquisite pangs of millionaire's melancholy, even if there aren't enough of them to sustain a whole album. [Mar 2009, p.85]
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Under The RadarThe group's debut album, Walking On A Dream, is a highly visual experience. [Spring 2009, p.71]
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Thankfully this album is only 10 tracks long, otherwise I don't think I could have sat all the way through it. I had trouble enough as it is.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 39 out of 50
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Mixed: 5 out of 50
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Negative: 6 out of 50
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Mar 15, 2011
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Nov 16, 2019
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Dec 30, 2013