Empire of the Sun are an Australian

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroa ...

duo formed in 2007. The duo is a collaboration between Luke Steele, of alternative rock band

The Sleepy Jackson The Sleepy Jackson are an Australian alternative rock band formed in Perth, Western Australia. The band's name was inspired by a former drummer who was narcoleptic. The band revolves around the distinctive vocal style of multi-instrumentalist ...

, and

Nick Littlemore Nicholas George Littlemore (born 6 May 1978) is an Australian musician, record producer, singer and songwriter. As a musician, he is the frontman of the electronic duo Pnau, an ex-member of the art-rock band Teenager and one part of the electr ...

, of electronic dance band

Pnau Pnau ( ) is an Australian dance music trio originating from Sydney. The trio, a duo before 2016, consists of the musicians Nick Littlemore (vocals, production), Peter Mayes (guitar, production) and Sam Littlemore (production), with the latter j ...

. Empire of the Sun's 2008 debut album, ''

Walking on a Dream Walking on a Dream may refer to: * ''Walking on a Dream'' (album), a 2008 album by Empire of the Sun ** "Walking on a Dream" (song), the album's title track {{Disambiguation ...

'', brought the duo international success and has been certified double platinum in Australia and gold in the United Kingdom. The album provided a number of internationally charting singles including "

Walking on a Dream Walking on a Dream may refer to: * ''Walking on a Dream'' (album), a 2008 album by Empire of the Sun ** "Walking on a Dream" (song), the album's title track {{Disambiguation ...

", which peaked at number ten on the

Australian ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...

and reached number sixty four on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and " We Are the People", which peaked at number fourteen on the UK Singles Chart. The band's second album, '' Ice on the Dune'', was released in June 2013, preceded by lead single "

Alive Alive may refer to: *Life Books, comics and periodicals * ''Alive'' (novel), a 2015 novel by Scott Sigler * '' Alive: The Final Evolution'', a 2003 shonen manga by Tadashi Kawashima and Adachitoka * '' Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors'', ...

" on 16 April. The band are signed to

EMI Music Australia EMI Recorded Music Australia Pty Ltd (called EMI Music Australia until May 2013) is an Australian imprint of Universal Music Australia, formerly a subsidiary label of EMI Recordings Ltd and, between 1979 and 1996, that of Thorn EMI. It is Austra ...

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

. As a live band, they have performed internationally and are known for their flamboyant appearance and elaborate stage sets. The duo have won a number of Australian music awards, with ''

Walking on a Dream Walking on a Dream may refer to: * ''Walking on a Dream'' (album), a 2008 album by Empire of the Sun ** "Walking on a Dream" (song), the album's title track {{Disambiguation ...

'' receiving 11 nominations at the

ARIA Music Awards of 2009 The 23rd Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAs) took place on 26 November 2009 at the Acer Arena at the Sydney Olympic Park complex. The ceremony was telecast o ...

, winning seven, including Album of the Year.

History

2000–2007: Formation

Luke Steele and

met in 2000 after being introduced by Steele's A&R executive, Simon Moor, in a bar in Sydney. Both were at the time signed to

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...

and had already been working on different projects. Over the years that followed, the two collaborated on a number of occasions. Littlemore helped write the song "Tell the Girls That I'm Not Hangin' Out", which appeared on

's 2003 debut album, '' Lovers'', and Steele had some artistic input in Littlemore's 2006 art-rock project Teenager. After a falling out over the song on ''Lovers'' the co-operation ceased for a while, with Littlemore commenting "I'm a very intense person and I take things to heart". The two reconvened in 2006 to work on two songs for the ''

'' album that was released in late 2007. They collaborated on the tracks "Freedom" and the opener "With You Forever" where Steele supplied the vocal. This prompted a change in direction for the band who began to craft a work more vocally-centered album featuring guest performances. A track-by-track analysis of the album ''Pnau'' revealed that writing of "With You Forever" with Luke Steele inspired Littlemore's band to begin work on a collaborative project. Littlemore said, "We fell in love with music again with ith You Forever I think this is nau'sfirst great song." The release of ''Pnau'' brought an interest from Elton John, who signed Littlemore to his management company. The new project began to develop under the working title of "Steelemore" as a collaboration between Steele and Littlemore, with Pnau partner Peter Mayes listed as a producer and occasional co-writer. As Steele was living in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

and Littlemore was in Sydney the two spent time writing songs separately while meeting occasionally in Sydney to decide on the musical direction and style. When they had accumulated enough material Mayes and duo began to record the album throughout 2007 with the assistance of Jonathan Sloan.

2007–2012: ''Walking on a Dream''

While the record had been largely recorded and mixed throughout 2007, the self-titled Pnau album took precedence for Littlemore and Mayes in the first half of 2008. The duo put out the title-track "

Walking on a Dream Walking on a Dream may refer to: * ''Walking on a Dream'' (album), a 2008 album by Empire of the Sun ** "Walking on a Dream" (song), the album's title track {{Disambiguation ...

" in anticipation of the album's release. It appeared in digital format on 30 August 2008, and received airtime on Australian radio and reached number ten on the

. A second single, titled " We Are the People", was released on 30 September and peaked at number twenty-four in Australia. The album ''

Walking on a Dream Walking on a Dream may refer to: * ''Walking on a Dream'' (album), a 2008 album by Empire of the Sun ** "Walking on a Dream" (song), the album's title track {{Disambiguation ...

'' appeared on 3 October 2008 and debuted at number eight on the ARIA Albums Charts, peaking at number six. The duo embarked on an international promotional tour in support of the album that was released in Europe in February/March 2009 followed by a North American release in April of the same year. While the project had initially been conceived as studio-only, the growing success brought "an audience

o which O, or o, is the fifteenth letter and the fourth vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''o'' (pronounced ), pl ...

we felt a duty to be good to them". Upon their return to Australia Steele began to prepare for a live debut of the band at Parklife Festival in September and October 2009. The headlined three shows, described as a visual "overload

here Here is an adverb that means "in, on, or at this place". It may also refer to: Software * Here Technologies, a mapping company * Here WeGo (formerly Here Maps), a mobile app and map website by Here Technologies, Here Television * Here TV (form ...

giant graphics swam and spun over the stage as costumed dancers writhed to the beat and Steele on a pedestal onstage,

earing In sailing, an earing is a small line (rope) used to fasten the corner of a sail to a spar or yard. Background In the Age of Sail, a position at the Weather Earing (the earing at the windward side of the ship) was considered a place of honor fo ...

a gigantic metallic headpiece and his usual 'Ming The Merciless' robe". A third single, " Standing on the Shore" was released in June 2009 however promotion was scaled back when Steele suffered from exhaustion. A remixed version " Without You" was released as the album's fourth single the following September.Littlemore decided to opt out of performing with the band live, citing 'I’ve always felt that once you make a record it's not yours anymore'. Steele gave the impression that his partner left the band in September 2009, however, Littlemore resurfaced in the following month, citing his production work and a project with

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...

as the reason for the lack of communication. He divided his time between the UK and Montreal while working on other creative commitments. Steele continued to perform live with the band at a number of Australian outdoor events. Towards the end of 2009, the band received a number of ARIA Awards for ''Walking on a Dream'', including Best Album of the Year. The band performed as a co-headliner at the touring

Future Music Festival Future Music Festival was an annual music festival featuring Australian and international artists held in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth in Australia and as of 2012 also Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. The festival was usually held in ...

around Australia in February/March 2010. The band made their international debut at the Vive Latino Festival in Mexico City in April of that same year. They moved to Europe for the summer festival season where they performed at among others

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbur ...

and Rock Werchter. The band made their American debut at the Lollapalooza festival. In October 2010, "We Are the People" was used as the soundtrack for a Vodafone TV commercial in Germany and subsequently topped the

German Singles Chart The GfK Entertainment charts are the official music charts in Germany and are gathered and published by GfK Entertainment (formerly Media Control and Media Control GfK International), a subsidiary of GfK, on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindust ...

. In November 2010, Littlemore indicated that he had "talked to Luke (Steele) the other day; we're doing a new record. We've already written a couple of tunes. You know when it's right I guess". In July 2011, Littlemore announced that the band had gone into the studio at the end of June to begin working on a second Empire of the Sun album while he confirmed would "come on board this time, actually come together and tour". As recording continued, Littlemore continued to have Pnau related commitments, releasing the album '' Soft Universe'' in 2011 and the Elton John remix album ''

Good Morning to the Night ''Good Morning to the Night'' is the first remix album by Elton John and Pnau, released in July 2012. The album's tracks are created from samples of various early John songs mixed together to form completely new songs. The album debuted at No. ...

'' in 2012.

2012–2016: ''Ice on the Dune''

For much of 2012, the duo and their collaborators spent time recording material while Steele and the band retired from touring. On 11 March 2013, the band revealed a trailer for their second album entitled '' Ice on the Dune'' directed by

J. D. Dillard JD Dillard is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter best known for his work on ''Sleight'' (2016), '' Sweetheart'' (2019), and ''Devotion'' (2022). Early life Dillard was raised as a Navy brat, the son of Bruce and Geri Dillar ...

and confirmed the release date as June 2013. The lead single "

" was released on 16 April and on the same day, the album was made available for pre-order on iTunes. The single had moderate success in Australia and Europe. On 18 April 2013, the

Farrelly brothers Peter Farrelly and Bobby Farrelly, collectively referred to as the Farrelly brothers, are American screenwriters and directors. They have made eleven films together, including ''Dumb and Dumber'', '' Outside Providence'', and '' There's Somethin ...

announced that the band would score '' Dumb and Dumber To''. ''Ice on the Dune'' was released on 14 June 2013 in Australia and New Zealand. Steele would later describe the lack of success of the album as part of their progression as a band. Steele received global media attention following an interview he completed with music publication ''NME'' in August 2013 at the Sziget Festival in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

. During the interview, Steele compared ''Ice on the Dune'' with Daft Punk's 2013 album release ''

Random Access Memories ''Random Access Memories'' is the fourth studio album by the French electronic duo Daft Punk, released on 17 May 2013 through Columbia Records. The album pays tribute to late 1970s and early 1980s American music, particularly from Los Angeles. ...

'', stating: "They had a great marketing campaign, but we’ve got better songs." In 2014 the band performed at the

Coachella Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert ...

, headlining the Sahara Tent. "Alive" was used in the introduction video for Google I/O 2013. It was also played within the introduction video of the new

Yahoo! Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Manage ...

logo on 5 September 2013, played over the

end credits Closing credits or end credits are a list of the cast and crew of a particular motion picture, television program, or video game. Where opening credits appear at the beginning of a work, closing credits appear close to, or at the very end of ...

of the 2013 film ''

Paranoia Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy co ...

'', and featured in the movie '' Dumb and Dumber To''. "Alive" was also a featured song on the soundtrack of

EA Sports EA Sports is a division of Electronic Arts that develops and publishes sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to imitate real-life sports networks by calling themselves the "EA Sports Network ...

game, ''

FIFA 14 ''FIFA 14'' is a football simulation video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts worldwide under the EA Sports label. It was released in September 2013 for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, PlayStat ...

''. In December 2014, Empire of the Sun released two songs, "Tonight" and "Wandering Star", which were written for the

film, '' Dumb and Dumber To''. For much of 2015, the duo were writing and recording of their third album in Hawaii and Los Angeles. By the end of the year, Steele noted that the new release was "75 percent there". The band continued to perform live in the second half of 2015, including a show at the Hollywood Bowl. In January 2016, the band's 2008 album title track "

Walking on a Dream Walking on a Dream may refer to: * ''Walking on a Dream'' (album), a 2008 album by Empire of the Sun ** "Walking on a Dream" (song), the album's title track {{Disambiguation ...

" was featured in a national commercial titled "The Dreamer" in the United States for the Japanese automaker

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a producti ...

to promote the 2016 Honda Civic. The song finally led to the US chart breakthrough for the band, peaking at number 3 on ''Billboard''s Alternative music charts, topping the dance music charts, and peaking at number 40 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart.

2016–2017: ''Two Vines''

In August 2016, it was announced that the third album ''

Two Vines ''Two Vines'' is the third studio album by Australian electronic music duo Empire of the Sun. It was released on 28 October 2016 by Virgin EMI Records. The album features guest appearances from Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham, Wendy Melvoin, ...

'' was set for release on 28 October 2016. The album was co-produced by Peter Mayes and features contributions by

Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician and record producer, best known as the lead guitarist and male lead vocalist of the band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with Fl ...

Wendy Melvoin Wendy Ann Melvoin (born January 26, 1964) is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Prince as part of his backing band The Revolution, and for her collaboration with Lisa Coleman as one half of the duo Wendy ...

, and former

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

collaborators Henry Hey and

Tim Lefebvre Tim Lefebvre (born February 4, 1968) is an American bass guitarist. Both as a session musician and band member, he has worked with a wide range of musicians, including David Bowie, The Black Crowes, Elvis Costello, Sting, Empire of the Sun, The Sl ...

. The 15-track album includes a remix of the song "Walking on a Dream" and was partly recorded in Hawaii. Littlemore explained the inspiration behind the title as "this image of a modern city overtaken by jungle". The first single " High and Low" was released on 24 August. "High and Low" was also featured in the

game, '' FIFA 17''. In an interview with Billboard in August 2017, Steele announced that he and Littlemore had recently started working on their fourth album in Japan, and that a music video for "Way to Go" was also shot in Japan. He spoke of how he loves Japanese music, and that a

koto Koto may refer to: * Koto (band), an Italian synth pop group * Koto (instrument), a Japanese musical instrument * Koto (kana), a ligature of two Japanese katakana * Koto (traditional clothing), a traditional dress made by Afro-Surinamese women * K ...

player came in for a day. In September 2017,

DS Automobiles DS Automobiles is a French luxury vehicle marque which was introduced in 2009. Formerly part of Citroën, DS has been a standalone brand since 2015 (2012 in China). DS can be an abbreviation of Different Spirit or Distinctive Series, although it ...

released a video featuring a new exclusive Empire song, "On Our Way Home", starring the Ukrainian actress and model Alina Kovalenko.

2021-present

In a podcast interview with ''The Plug with Neil Griffiths'' on October 6, 2021, Littlemore said that the band had been struggling to write new music remotely over

Zoom Zoom may refer to: Technology Computing * Zoom (software), videoconferencing application * Page zooming, the ability to magnify or shrink a portion of a page on a computer display * Zooming user interface, a graphical interface allowing for image ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, and assured fans that new music was being composed. In February 2022, Luke Steele announced a debut solo studio album, ''Listen to the Water'' and released its lead single, "Common Man", on 11 February 2022.

Name

Although the name of the project has been attributed to the 1984 novel of the same name by

J. G. Ballard James Graham Ballard (15 November 193019 April 2009) was an English novelist, short story writer, satirist, and essayist known for provocative works of fiction which explored the relations between human psychology, technology, sex, and mass med ...

, Littlemore denied this and offers an explanation, saying, "the name comes more from the idea of ... the fact that we're traveling around the world going to all the places of empires of the civilization where the sun has been a theme of worship. It's not based on the Ballard novel nor the Spielberg film of the same name."

Style

The band employs elaborate stage sets and headdress (such as wearing

kabuto ' (兜, 冑) is a type of helmet first used by ancient Japanese warriors which, in later periods, became an important part of the traditional Japanese armour worn by the samurai class and their retainers in feudal Japan. Note that in the Ja ...

war bonnet A modern-day dog soldier wearing a feathered headdress during a pow wow">Dog_Soldiers.html" ;"title="Cheyenne Dog Soldiers">dog soldier wearing a feathered headdress during a pow wow at the Indian Summer festival in Henry Maier Festival Park, M ...

s and war paint), which reflects the duo's background in visual art. Littlemore explained that "we did see

Alejandro Jodorowsky Alejandro Jodorowsky Prullansky (; born 17 February 1929) is a Chilean-French avant-garde filmmaker. Best known for his 1970s films ''El Topo'' and '' The Holy Mountain'', Jodorowsky has been "venerated by cult cinema enthusiasts" for his work ...

's '' Holy Mountain'' and it influenced the way we could think about visualization". The band has worked with a number of designers, including Jessica Huerta. Steele described the inspiration for the visual aspect as "the vision of this band, it's built on imagination, so it comes from studying the

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

s in art school to digital graphics, to

topography Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sc ...

, to filming under the ocean, to oil paintings, anything really."

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Promotional singles

Other appearances

Remixes

Music videos

Awards and nominations

In the UK, they gained fourth position on the

BBC News website BBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. It is one of the most popular news websites, with 1.2 billion website visits in April 2021, as well as being used by 60% of the U ...

Sound of 2009 Sound of... is an annual BBC poll of music critics and industry figures to find the most promising new music talent. It was first conducted by the BBC News website in 2003, and is now widely covered by the corporation's online, radio and TV outle ...

poll.

ARIA Awards

The

nominations were announced on 8 October 2009.ARIA Music Awards of 2009 - Winners & Nominees
Empire of the Sun received the most nominations of any artist, with a total of eleven. The winners were announced on 26 November 2009 with Empire of the Sun winning in seven categories. The nominations for the

ARIA Music Awards of 2010 The 24th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAs) are a series of award ceremonies which included the 2010 ARIA Artisan Awards, ARIA Hall of Fame Awards, ARIA Fine ...

were announced on 28 September 2010 and the winners were announced on 7 November 2010. The final nominees for the

ARIA Music Awards of 2013 The 27th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAs) were a series of award ceremonies which included the 2013 ARIA Artisan Awards, ARIA Hall of Fame Awards, ARIA Fin ...

were announced on 14 October, as well as the nominees and winners for the Fine Arts Awards and Artisan Awards. , - , rowspan="11" , 2009 , , rowspan="2" , ''Walking on a Dream'' , ,

ARIA Award for Album of the Year The ARIA Music Award for Album of the Year, is an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Australian Recording Indu ...

, , , - ,

ARIA Award for Highest Selling Album The ARIA Music Award The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industr ...

, , , - , rowspan="2" , "Walking on a Dream" , ,

ARIA Award for Single of the Year The ARIA Music Award for Single of the Year/Song of the Year, is an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Austral ...

, , , - , ARIA Award for Highest Selling Single , , , - , "Walking on a Dream" (directed by Josh Logue of Mathematics) , , rowspan="2" ,

ARIA Award for Best Video The ARIA Award for Best Video, is presented at the annual ARIA Awards, which recognise "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), an o ...

, , , - , "We Are the People" , , , - , rowspan="2" , Empire of the Sun , ,

ARIA Award for Best Group The ARIA Music Award for Best Group, is an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Australian Recording Industry As ...

, , , - ,

ARIA Award for Best Pop Release The ARIA Music Award for Best Pop Release, is an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Australian Recording Indus ...

, , , - , Empire of the Sun and Donnie Sloan with Peter Mayes , ,

Producer of the Year The Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical is an honor presented to record producers for quality non- classical music at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors i ...

, , , - , Aaron Hayward and David Homer from Debaser , , ARIA Award for Best Cover Art , , , - , Peter Mayes , , Engineer of the Year , , , - , rowspan="2" , 2010 , , "Half Mast" , , Best Pop Release , , , - , '' Accidents Happen'' soundtrack – Luke Steele, Empire of the Sun and The Middle East , , Best Original Soundtrack/Cast/Show Album (Fine Arts Award) , , , - , rowspan="5" ,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

, , rowspan="2" , Empire of the Sun – ''Ice on the Dune'' , , Best Group , , , - , Best Pop Release , , , - , Aaron Hayward and David Homer (Debaser) , , Best Cover Art , , , - , Peter Mayes , , Engineer of the Year , , , - , Luke Steele, Nick Littlemore, Peter Mayes and Jonathan Sloan , , Producer of the Year , ,

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). , - , rowspan="3" , 2010 , , "We Are the People" , , Song of the Year , , , - , Luke Steele, Jonathan Sloan, Nick Littlemore – Empire of the Sun , , Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year , , , - , "Walking on a Dream" , , Dance Work of the Year , , , - , rowspan="2" ,

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, rowspan="2" , "Alive" , Song of the Year , , - , Dance Work of the Year ,

International Dance Music Awards

, - , rowspan=2, 2010 , Themselves , Best Breakthrough Artist (Group) , , - , " We Are The People" , rowspan=2, Best Alternative/Rock Dance Track , , - , 2014 , "

" ,

MTV Europe Music Awards

The

MTV Europe Music Awards The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an a ...

is an award presented by

Viacom International Media Networks Paramount International Networks (PIN) is the international division of Paramount Global. The division oversees the production, broadcasting and promotion of key Paramount's brands outside of the United States. These brands include Paramount Net ...

to honour artists and music in pop culture. They commenced in 2013. , - ,

, Themselves , Best Australian Act , , -

Q Awards

, - , 2009 , Themselves , Best New Act ,

World Music Awards

, - , 2010 , rowspan=3, Themselves , World's Best Selling Australian Artist , , - , rowspan=7, 2014 , World's Best Group , , - , World's Best Live Act , , - , '' Ice on the Dune'' , World's Best Album , , - , rowspan=2, "

" , World's Best Song , , - , rowspan=2, World's Best Video , , - , rowspan=2, " We are The People" , , - , World's Best Song ,

Live performance band members

* Luke Steele – lead vocals, guitars, keyboards (2008–present) *

– tour management (2008–present), keyboards, backing vocals (2008–2009) * Ken Jennings – keyboards (2009–present) *

Ian Ball Ian Thomas Ball (born 19 October 1975) is an English musician, most notable for being part of the indie rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1 ...

– guitar (2015–present) * Olly Peacock – drums (2015–present) * Alex Berry – bass (2015–present) * Tony Mitolo – drums (2008–2015) * Surahn Sidhu – guitar, bass, backing vocals (2008–2015)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Empire of the Sun (Band) 2007 establishments in Australia APRA Award winners ARIA Award winners Astralwerks artists Australian musical duos Australian new wave musical groups Australian synthpop groups Capitol Records artists Dance-rock musical groups Electronic music duos Australian electronic rock musical groups Electropop groups Male musical duos Musical groups established in 2007 Virgin Records artists