With the first two parts already released; the final installment of City of Sound’s Silent Empire will slowly roll out over the next few weeks, filling the void in the concept album format that’s been sadly missing from music.
The concept album has been around for quite some time, reaching its peak in the early ’70s with bands like Genesis, Yes, Pink Floyd, and The Who, to name but a few. Even though music evolves over time, the concept album has remained constant. Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime brought forward the notion of the 1% in the early years of corporate greed. Green Day entered the mix with American Idiot and Canada’s own Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs kept the spirit going. No genre has stayed away from the concept album: Folk (Avett Brothers), Hip Hop (JayZ, Kendrick Lamar), Metal (Mastadon, Avenged Sevenfold) and it’s unlikely the style will disappear, especially with the resurgent popularity of headphones.
Concept albums are made for inner listening; escape into a fantasy world filled with your favorite band and go on a trip with them. City Of Sound’s Silent Empire is no different.
Silent Empire
City Of Sound is the brainchild of Jordan Wright, vocals, piano, and writer. Accompanied by Andrew Leigh on guitar and Lacey Nova on violin, These three are not just bandmates; they’re the closest of friends and it’s quite evident in their music. Jordan says, “Andrew, Lacey and I are with each other every single day. We generally do life together. We experience everyone’s failures together. Even though they’re not technically writing the songs, I am taking a lot of inspirations and insights based on what we are all dealing with. Even if we weren’t in a band together, we’d still be very close friends and in each other’s lives every day. If you are going to be in a band with friends, you better be close, cause if you’re not that close, you won’t last that long.”
Andrew and Jordan have known each other for about five years. They’ve couched surfed together in the same apartment, as artists usually do when they first move to LA. Jordan adds, “We met through mutual friends and were never super close. I was sleeping on the floor of an apartment in LA and Andrew was sleeping on the balcony. He got married and then I got married and through that journey, we became closer. Then I asked him if he would like to be in a band I’m putting together and he said ‘let’s do it.’ Then we started working on songs and since then we’ve been producing music together, working on projects together.” Coming from those roots of sleeping on the floor will always keep us grounded.”
Lacey Nova adds such sweet, tender moments with her violin. You wouldn’t expect someone who plays a traditionally “delicate” instrument to also be a fighter in mixed martial arts. It’s such a dichotomy when you compare violins with violence. Jordan and his wife are also quite close with Lacey. All three were working out together on the day of this interview. “A long long time ago I also was an MMA fighter and competed in that world,” Jordan says speaking of when he met Lacey, “When I was working at a gym in LA, Lacey came through the doors just when I was putting together City Of Sound. We started talking and she mentioned she was a violinist. My plan when I moved out to LA for my band was to find a violinist. Lacey had laid the violin down for some time as she was disenfranchised with the industry. So I asked her if she would be willing to pick up the violin again and give it a try. We still train together, I work her corner during fights, as she still competes. Now she’s an official, integral member of our band.”
Also joining Jordan and company for what was set to be a huge tour (pre-Covid-19) is drummer Eva Friedman. “I feel sorry for Eva. She came in and learned all our songs. She worked super hard to be ready for the tour and now everything is put on hold.”
Time to explore Silent Empire. Head to Spotify or wherever you stream your music, slap on the headphones, close your eyes (not yet though, otherwise you won’t be able to finish this article) and go on a journey of self-reflection, inner conflict and awakening to its conclusion of kicking ass and taking names. You’ll be engulfed in an atmosphere of sound with sharp catchy lyrics.
Jordan adds, “The sound is not just full for the purpose of filling holes. Even though we have so much going on in our songs, everything is intentional, everything has a purpose and we’ve created a sweet balance. We wanted to create this wall of sound where you can peer through the fence a little bit” Filled with lush, sweeping melodies, the music will take you away from your everyday concerns while the lyrics will tell a tale of bravery as our heroine goes on her journey.
This album was supposed to be released a while ago in three parts. However with the shut down of life as we know it, Jordan says we faced a difficult decision. “To not have any new music over the course of the year and no exposure with touring or live shows, we had to change direction.” Something modern promoters tend to do is check the Spotify followers. “We decided to try to expand our listener base with strategic releases. We released part one at the start of 2019 as ‘Empire’ (the lead character in the story) was beginning a new stage in her life with reflection. Empire II was put out towards the end of last year and all of part three was set to be released at the start of this summer, to signify the fact that she (Empire) has become something new. It made sense to release it in the summer due to the music’s uplifting tone.
It’s an interesting strategy that will pay off. “I for One”, am hooked. I have been drawn into the world of the lead character and am eagerly anticipating it’s grand finale. However instead of getting part three all at once, we have to wait until August for the epic ending as singles will be released throughout the summer. The anticipation is killing me. The intro has been released already and the first single, Aurora, comes out on May 25th. “We are hoping that as things start to open up, we will have developed enough momentum to either jump on a tour or do our own tour this fall, or at least when things open fully.”
To whet our appetite for new music Jordan decided to release a few songs not related to the Silent Empire project with the latest being Wake Up from the Apartment Diaries a collection of demos and new music. This song is very fitting for these times with acerbic lines like: ‘Rattle the cage, these chains were meant for someone else. We are the rage defiant to the walls you build‘ “I wanted to have something to say about the times we are living in, but I didn’t want to come off as pompous. I feel like the song has a lot to say and I feel that people will resonate with it. I don’t think it is going to come off as grandstanding. I feel this is the right time to release the song.” Wake Up sure has an impact even though it doesn’t continue the tale of Empire.
This is the first time I’ve reviewed and previewed an album without an advance copy so I can only go by what you know as well. I have to wait for the ending of Empire’s journey along with everyone else. Each part opens with amazing motion picture soundtrack style orchestration that is equal to anything Danny Elfman or Hans Zimmer have produced in so much that it punctuates the story and draws the listener in eagerly anticipating the next scene. Rivers of Eden sets the stage perfectly for part three. However there is a difference in the opening of parts one and two where Rivers includes a lyrical component. The music is beautifully accented with Lacey Nova’s incredible violin mastery and builds to a cliff-hanging crescendo that makes you want the rest immediately. Believe! “We want the entire summer to be the summer of Silent Empire.”
For more information, lyrics and music head to City Of Sound or wherever you stream your music. It’s safe to say the concept album format is great hands with Jordan Wright and company. The production is well written, beautifully orchestrated and expertly mastered. It’s safe to say this is a Metropolis of Sound. The ending is going to be epic.
