Empire Affair is a five piece of pure indie-rock energy from Bournemouth (United Kingdom).
Their second EP “Sparks in the Dark” was produced under the Blue Pilot wing. The EP was recorded at The Premises in London during July 2012.
About that EP and plans for this year, Matt Park answered some questions for our website.
Remix: At the start can you introduce band Empire Affair to our readers?
Matt: Hello, we are Empire Affair, we play upbeat, English flavoured indie rock with hints of disco, pop and punk. By name we are: Darren (drums), Jack & Matt (guitars), Neil (vocals) and Tom (bass).
Remix: You had a mini tour in Croatia in november 2012. How was it?
Matt: We had a lot of fun in Croatia, we were not sure what to expect so we went there to give it everything we could and as this was a great opportunity to get our music into ears so far away from home and also to learn as much as we could from the Croatian music scene. Even before we left Croatia we wanted to get more dates booked there.
Remix: Do you have any plans to visit Serbia too?
Matt: We are trying to plan some more dates in Europe for the summer and Serbia is on our list of places we would like to visit.
Remix: In 2012. You released EP “Sparks in the Dark”. By the way, I have the CD and I like it. There are four songs. Why did you choose to record another EP not an album?
Matt: As with many band in their early stages, our biggest obstacle is money, so we had the choice of doing a whole album of songs that were recorded quickly or doing 4 songs and recording them very well. Looking back on it, we are very pleased with all 4 of the songs and how they sound. The 4 song format was also a perfect way of telling the 3-part story that is in Tornadoes / One Night in Munich / Sunrise.
Remix: Your debut EP “Red Light” was nominated for a Dorset Music Award in 2012. It’s is surely great success for a band. Do you expect similar success with 2nd EP or even better than with first one?
Matt: “Red Light” was recorded to be a demo CD to give to venues and people that we knew to get our name on the local scene and to make the first steps for booking gigs etc, so it certainly exceeded our expectations of it. We took the recording of “Sparks in the Dark” much more seriously and really applied ourselves to it, and we think it is much more reflective of our sound. The new EP has already sold more than our debut on itunes, and we feel it still has the potential to stretch further.
Remix: And who won Dorset Music Award in 2012?
Matt: We can’t remember, although we have been told it was very close between us and them.
Remix: What is your plan for this year?
Matt: We really enjoy playing live and especially to new people, so we will be touring as much as possible and of course writing more songs ready for the next release.
Remix: Thank you very much for your time. Hope we will have a chance to see you next time you come here.
Matt: We can not wait to see you, keep an eye on our website and facebook for more news. Thank you!
