Empire State Games…
Empire State Games were yet another band that had an all too brief existence and broke up right as things were starting to roll for them. Although I would say for their nearly two years together they made the most of it by putting out three singles (including a split with King for a Day) and CD EP on Makoto. In 2001 Elkion Records put together compilation of all the bands past singles along with a couple tunes from the bands Makoto EP. Also tacked on is a cover of “Just What I Needed” originally by the Cars and two unreleased songs, one of them live as it was never properly recorded.
I know now days it may surprise a few out there that there was actually some very well done and highly listenable emo/pop-punk around back before it became as huge as it is now…bands like Knapsack come to mind real quickly. However, Empire State Games did it about as well as you can do it and it definitely puts anything out these days to shame. I realize I sound like a bitter old man whenever I say that, however I am not that old and really don’t mean to, it’s just the sad sad truth of it all. I’ll opt for the non-watered down catchy sweetness that is Empire State Games any day over that sort of fodder. Regardless, don’t listen to me…take a listen and decide for yourself.
Empire State Games – The Wrong Way to Hold a Microphone [MP3]
Empire State Games – Circus Strongman [MP3]
You can still pick up this discography disc over at Elkion Records. Definitely do it if the tunes above are of any interest.
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January 15th, 2008 at 5:37 am
wow. came across this randomly on hypemachine but way to go! i think you and i might be 2 of the 20 people in the world who remember or even know who this band is! i miss this kind of quality too. and props on the knapsack reference.
January 15th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
Empire State Games rules. I think the drummer plays (or played) in Koufax. I miss these guys.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:50 am
Empire State Games were great– I had one of their singles on Makoto (Dialogue / 100 Years of Baseball), and I thought it was awesome.
I have only the sleeve and the insert now, though– I need to track down a replacement copy of the actual vinyl…
January 16th, 2008 at 3:23 pm
Oh yeah, I’ve been running behind on your posts lately but this is just the kind of shit I needed to rope me back in. You can tell from the band name exactly what it’s gonna sound like, and I dig it. I had never heard of them before for some reason, but I’ll have to grab this disc sometime. Yet another solid recommendation from you, heh!
January 17th, 2008 at 5:56 am
Awesome band which I figured no one knew about. King For A Day were also a pretty great band.
August 30th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
dude, i had this cd in my car when my car got stolen. i was in high school and pushed a red crx. RIP.