The Empire Shall Fall
Encyclopedia
The Empire Shall Fall is an American metalcore
band from Providence, Rhode Island
that was formed in 2008 by former Killswitch Engage
frontman Jesse Leach. Including Leach, The Empire Shall Fall consists of guitarists Jake Davenport and Marcus de Lisle, bassist Nick Sollecito, and drummer Jeff Pitts.
, although the band retains some of the singing elements of Seemless
, which has since been put upon an indefinite hiatus.
In 2008 the band released a demo consisting of four songs on their myspace page: "Voices Forming Weapons", "The Kingdom", "These Colors Bleed", and "We The People". The demo is currently available for download on their record label Angle Side Side Records' official website. The label has since stated that "The Empire Shall Fall enters HQ Sound Labs Studio (Dear Hunter, Receiving End of Sirens) in April to begin recording for their debut CD to be released Summer '09."
On September 11, 2009, The Empire Shall Fall announced through their myspace page that their debut album Awaken would be released on November 17, 2009 with eight songs, including the previously recorded demo tracks re-recorded and reworked, and three new songs which had only been played live.
, Meshuggah
, and Edge of Sanity
. Awaken draws heavily on the band members' interests in jazz, punk, and experimental music. They are said to sound like Refused
, At the Drive-In
, Deftones
, and Between the Buried and Me
. The album reflects heavily on the themes of politics
and transcendentalism
. Lyrically the album advocates positivity, unity, and empowerment. Inspirations for the album have been cited as Jello Biafra, Benjamin Franklin, and Ron Paul.
In a recent tumblr post, the band revealed:
...we have been working on a series of concept EPs. While we haven’t yet released details on the concept linking the EPs, we can tell you that the first one deals with redemption and the “guts of emotion.” Lyrical content deals with “picking up the pieces of your life and starting over” and “finding a new perspective as a result of the changes and lessons learned in the past.” The first EP, called "Vl 1: Solar Plexus" is expected to be released in the fall of 2011.
Metalcore
Metalcore is a subgenre of heavy metal combining various elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. The name is a portmanteau of the names of the two genres. The term took on its current meaning in the mid-1990s, describing bands such as Earth Crisis, Deadguy and Integrity...
band from Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
that was formed in 2008 by former Killswitch Engage
Killswitch Engage
Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbandment of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Howard Jones, bassist Mike D'Antonio, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, and drummer...
frontman Jesse Leach. Including Leach, The Empire Shall Fall consists of guitarists Jake Davenport and Marcus de Lisle, bassist Nick Sollecito, and drummer Jeff Pitts.
Inception (2008–2009)
The Empire Shall Fall was formed in late 2008 by ex-Killswitch Engage frontman Jesse Leach with a handful of instrumentalists: guitarists Jake Davenport and Marcus de Lisle, bassist Nick Sollecito, and drummer Jeff Pitts. The Empire Shall Fall is the first band vocalist Leach has used screamed vocals in since Killswitch EngageKillswitch Engage
Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbandment of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Howard Jones, bassist Mike D'Antonio, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, and drummer...
, although the band retains some of the singing elements of Seemless
Seemless
Seemless was an American rock supergroup formed by ex-Shadows Fall drummer Derek Kerswill, ex-Killswitch Engage vocalist Jesse Leach, and ex-Overcast and ex -Killswitch Engage guitarist Pete Cortese....
, which has since been put upon an indefinite hiatus.
In 2008 the band released a demo consisting of four songs on their myspace page: "Voices Forming Weapons", "The Kingdom", "These Colors Bleed", and "We The People". The demo is currently available for download on their record label Angle Side Side Records' official website. The label has since stated that "The Empire Shall Fall enters HQ Sound Labs Studio (Dear Hunter, Receiving End of Sirens) in April to begin recording for their debut CD to be released Summer '09."
On September 11, 2009, The Empire Shall Fall announced through their myspace page that their debut album Awaken would be released on November 17, 2009 with eight songs, including the previously recorded demo tracks re-recorded and reworked, and three new songs which had only been played live.
Awaken (2009–2011)
Awaken was released on November 17, 2009 through Angle Side Side Records, owned by The Empire Shall Fall's bassist, Nick Sollecito. The band cites its influences as At the GatesAt the Gates
At the Gates is an extreme metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden, and a major progenitor of the Gothenburg death-metal sound. Their early albums lean towards a death metal sound, but later albums sound more like melodic death metal.Initially active from 1990 to 1996, the band reformed in 2007 for a...
, Meshuggah
Meshuggah
Meshuggah is an extreme metal band from Umeå, Sweden, formed in 1987. Meshuggah's line-up has primarily consisted of founding members vocalist Jens Kidman and lead guitarist Fredrik Thordendal, drummer Tomas Haake, who joined in 1990, and rhythm guitarist Mårten Hagström, who joined in 1992...
, and Edge of Sanity
Edge of Sanity
Edge of Sanity was a Swedish death metal band. Edge of Sanity are regarded alongside Opeth as being the first to fuse extreme metal styles like death and black metal with progressive rock.- History :...
. Awaken draws heavily on the band members' interests in jazz, punk, and experimental music. They are said to sound like Refused
Refused
Refused was a Swedish hardcore punk band originating from Umeå, Sweden, formed in 1991. In total the band released five EPs and three albums, before splitting up in 1998...
, At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In was an American rock band from El Paso, Texas, considered part of the post-hardcore genre and active from 1993 to 2001. They were known for their extremely energetic stage shows which hearkened back to the 1980s hardcore scene...
, Deftones
Deftones
Deftones are an American alternative metal band from Sacramento, California, founded in 1988. The band consists of Chino Moreno , Stephen Carpenter , Chi Cheng , Frank Delgado , and Abe Cunningham . Currently Sergio Vega is standing in on bass while Cheng recovers from a car accident...
, and Between the Buried and Me
Between the Buried and Me
Between the Buried and Me is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. They have released a total of five studio albums, as well as a cover album, an EP and a live DVD/CD...
. The album reflects heavily on the themes of politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
and transcendentalism
Transcendentalism
Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that developed in the 1830s and 1840s in the New England region of the United States as a protest against the general state of culture and society, and in particular, the state of intellectualism at Harvard University and the doctrine of the Unitarian...
. Lyrically the album advocates positivity, unity, and empowerment. Inspirations for the album have been cited as Jello Biafra, Benjamin Franklin, and Ron Paul.
Volume 1: Solar Plexus (2011–present)
The band has announced their predicament to released a new via their social networks (I.E. Facebook, Twitter, Hootsuite etc.) They have announced the title "Solar Plexus" that is expected to be released in the fall of 2011.In a recent tumblr post, the band revealed:
...we have been working on a series of concept EPs. While we haven’t yet released details on the concept linking the EPs, we can tell you that the first one deals with redemption and the “guts of emotion.” Lyrical content deals with “picking up the pieces of your life and starting over” and “finding a new perspective as a result of the changes and lessons learned in the past.” The first EP, called "Vl 1: Solar Plexus" is expected to be released in the fall of 2011.
Members
- Jesse LeachJesse LeachJesse David Leach is an American musician from Providence, Rhode Island, and is best known as being the former lead vocalist of Killswitch Engage and later for being the vocalist for the blues rock band Seemless...
— Lead vocals (2008–present) - Jake Davenport — Lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
(2008–present) - Marcus de Lisle — Rhythm guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
(2008–present) - Nick Sollecito — BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
(2008–present) - Jeff Pitts — Drums, Percussion (2008–present)
Discography
| Year | Album details | Chart peaks | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
UK UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
||
| 2009 | Awaken Awaken (The Empire Shall Fall album) Awaken is the debut album by The Empire Shall Fall, released on November 17, 2009 through Angle Side Side Records, owned by The Empire Shall Fall's bassist, Nick Sollecito. Awaken features the vocal talents of former Killswitch Engage vocalist Jesse Leach. The band cites its influences as At the... Released: November 17, 2009 Label: Angle Side Side Records |
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| 2011 | Volume 1: Solar Plexus Released: 2011 Label: Angle Side Side Records |
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