Michigan emo revival OGs Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) played their final show on May 7, 2016 at Flint Local 432, and they said they’d only return if their beloved Detroit Lions win the Super Bowl. That hasn’t happened in the nine years since they last played, but we were very pleasantly surprised to see them on the Best Friends Forever lineup today, alongside forebears like Mineral, Texas Is The Reason, Jawbreaker, Pedro the Lion, Knapsack, Elliott, Hey Mercedes, and others; and other back-in-action revival-era peers like Snowing (who were signed to Empire!’s label Count Your Lucky Stars), Marietta, and Pity Sex. They’ve given a statement about the reunion, revealing that they’re “leaning towards” doing a warm-up show in Michigan before the fest, and as for the Lions thing: “That is still on and what ‘back’ means will include a tour and new music and not just a couple of shows.” Here’s their full statement:
Hello! It’s been a minute, huh? This is as much of a shock to you as it is to us, but we have decided to play a reunion show at the @bestfriendsforeverfest in Las Vegas this October.
First off, yes- the @detroitlionsnfl have not yet won a Super Bowl. So this is an exception and probably one of the most rare exceptions of all time. This show is honestly so stacked and we have no business being on it, but it is too good not to play. Almost all of our biggest influences are playing this. This is a dream come true!
We are leaning towards doing a show here in Michigan to tune up sometime before the fest since it has been like 9 years since we last played. We will let you know those details if and when they happen.
As per our statement, re: the Lions- that is still on and what back means will include a tour and new music and not just a couple of shows.
We cannot wait to see everyone! This is so surreal. Biggest thank you to everyone at BFF Fest for reaching out and asking us to be a part of this.
Empire! Empire! were initially around from 2007 to 2016 and they released two albums, 2009’s What It Takes to Move Forward and 2014’s You Will Eventually Be Forgotten, plus about another album’s worth of songs across several split singles and EPs. Stream their classic debut LP below.