Empire
Empire had its origins in the demise of the band Flash -- in fact, for a short while its name was simply Flash Mk. II. Guitarist Peter Banks, formerly of Yes, emerged from management disputes of Flash to pull together a band of jam-mates in the loosely structured ZOX and the Radar Boys. These jams had featured Phil Collins behind the drums, though his commitment to Genesis meant that he could only sit in on a few tracks of the 1974 recording sessions for the newly named Empire.
The sound of Empire had distinct progressive elements, as one might expect with both Banks and Collins around. Their recordings, though, were marked by a willingness to dip into a wide variety of musical genres, from blues to country blues. The band was also unusual among progressive bands in being fronted by a woman. Although Renaissance had the ethereal voice of Annie Haslam, Empire's Sydney Foxx provided a notable counterpoint to the band's complexity by with her strong bluesy vocals, not unlike Lydia Pense or even Janis Joplin at times.
Empire's work brought little success, though. Despite some anticipation among the pop music press, Banks and Foxx were unable to land distribution for their work either in Britain or the U.S. Still clinging to hope, the group recorded two more albums in the '70s but to no avail. It was to be two decades before One Way released them on CD; and while not exactly lost classics, the albums are of a high enough quality that it's unfortunate that the band was unable to get any footing before its breakup in 1980.
© Paul Collins /TiVo
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Нас больше не спасет любовь
Rock - Released by EMPIRE BAND on Jan 21, 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Empire Strikes Back
Punk / New Wave - Released by Triple-R MusicEntertainment on Oct 14, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Pressure
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Empire Récords on Jan 24, 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
In My Life/I'm Home
Alternative & Indie - Released by 2591621 Records DK on Nov 13, 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Empire Strikes Back
Punk / New Wave - Released by Empire Records on Mar 15, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Ascending Mixtape, Vol. 1
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Competition U on Apr 1, 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Last To Leave Your House
Rock - Released by 2591621 Records DK on Feb 17, 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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My Party, My Rules
Rock - Released by Silent Cult on Mar 16, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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MULTIVERSE
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by EMPIRE & qwaston on Jun 16, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Autumn Love
Drum & Bass - Released by Basebox Records on Jan 26, 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -