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Empire of the Sun Discusses Music and Legacy at Festival

Empire of the Sun Discusses Music and Legacy at Festival

2 days ago7 min read5 comments

For nearly two decades, the Australian electronic music duo Empire of the Sun has been a remarkable musical force, a truth they recently affirmed with their transcendent performance at the 2025 CRSSD Festival, a set that felt less like a concert and more like a carefully curated journey through a discography that has consistently defied genre. It all began with 2008’s multi-platinum 'Walking on a Dream,' an album that didn't just arrive on the scene but built its own world, a sun-drenched, neon-soaked landscape where synth-pop met glam-rock theatrics, creating a sonic universe as visually distinct as it was audibly captivating.That foundational record’s enduring legacy was powerfully underscored just this past September with the release of 'Walking On A Dream (Reimagined),' a project that invited a new generation of artists to commune with its timeless melodies, proving that great songs are not static artifacts but living, breathing entities that can be reborn in fresh contexts. Seeing Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore command the stage is to witness the culmination of a lifelong dedication to artistic world-building; their performances are not merely a sequence of tracks but a flowing, cinematic narrative, each song a scene in a larger epic that blends the nostalgic with the futuristic, a quality that has allowed them to remain relevant while many of their electronic peers have faded into obscurity.Their four studio albums collectively form a kind of psychedelic travelogue, a map of a mindscape where every arpeggiated synth line and ethereal vocal feels meticulously placed, a testament to their unique alchemy that transforms studio experimentation into festival anthems. The legacy of 'Walking on a Dream' in particular is akin to a classic vinyl record that you discover anew with each spin; its initial success was no fluke, but rather the result of a perfect storm of melodic genius and visionary aesthetics, a blueprint they have expanded upon but never abandoned.At CRSSD, as the opening chords of that titular track washed over the crowd, it was clear this was more than a nostalgic throwback—it was a reaffirmation of a musical philosophy that prioritizes feeling and fantasy, a necessary escape in an often-gritty reality. Their ability to draw inspiration from sources as diverse as 70s prog-rock, 80s new wave, and modern electronic production, then filter it through their own uniquely Antipodean lens, creates a sound that is both globally accessible and deeply idiosyncratic. In an industry obsessed with fleeting trends, Empire of the Sun stands as a monument to the power of a cohesive artistic vision, a duo that built an empire not on hype, but on the enduring, dream-like quality of their music, ensuring that their sun is far from setting.