Empire of the Sun Talk Long Gestation For ‘Ask That God’

Good things, as we’ve been told since day nought, take time.

Empire of the Sun fans patiently waited for Ask That God, the electronic-pop act’s fourth studio album. Eight long years.

“As necessary as it probably was for the band to go through that period,” Lord Littlemore tells Billboard, “I would really hope that we never do it again. And we just keep coming with lots of music.”

Ask That God arrived fully formed on July 26, led off by a batch of joyful, hooky singles, including “Cherry Blossom,” “Changes,” and “Music On The Radio,” and “The Feeling you Get” — and their respective, interstellar music videos.

When frontman Emperor Steele (Luke Steele) and Littlemore (Nick Littlemore) reunite for a new album, it’s the musical equivalent of planets aligning. Littlemore keeps busy with Pnau, operating a label and more, while Steele, the ex-Sleepy Jackson lead, helms a solo project and lapped Australia in February 2023 for an Empire of the Sun run.

“It’s so much fun making music with Luke and our kind of wider family of musicians and people that we’re always seeking and experimenting with. We want to make a lot of music for you guys,” says Littlemore. Empire of the Sun, he admits, “is a really cool band to be in.”

Anyone familiar with Empire of the Sun would agree. Steele and Littlemore are well-traveled Australians, they step out in a style that’s not of this world, and their canon includes some gems, the type that sit in a place where pop, nostalgia and electronic music intersect.

Recording sessions for Ask That God took place around the globe, beginning in Asia, the influence of which can be seen in those Michael Maxxis-directed music videos. Along the way Steele and Littlemore collected inspiration from anywhere, everywhere. And new instruments, drum machines, “different things that could spark your brain,” explains Steele. “It’s all about tricking your process. You do it new and you feel like a kid again.”

Ask That God (via EMI) isn’t the first time an Empire of the Sun project has taken eight years to complete its journey.

The colorful group first introduced itself to the world in 2008 with the single “Walking on a Dream,” a top 10 hit in Australia, where they would scoop four ARIA Awards. In the U.S., the song had a second life when it was synced to the Honda Civic “The Dreamer” campaign in 2016 — eight years after its release — driving it to No. 65 on the Billboard Hot 100 and powering it to No. 1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs, their second leader on the tally after 2013’s “Alive”. Across all platforms, “Walking on a Dream” has accumulated north of one billion streams.

There was “tremendous pressure” after that first record, notes Steele. Trying to navigate expectations, he admits, “it’s so tough.” Older, wiser heads prevailed, and the bandmates now “celebrate what an extraordinary ride this is,” enthuses Littlemore. “It took a long time, to be fair. Like, massive amounts of success, it’s not the dream you might think it is. And it is also the dream you think it is.”

Ask That God follows 2008 breakthrough debut Walking on a Dream, 2013’s Ice on the Dune and 2016’s Two Vines, all of which cracked the top 10 in Australia.

Tour dates will follow later in the year, including a homecoming trek, and concerts in the United States and Mexico. Littlemore, who has battled with Ramsay Hunt Syndrome, a rare ailment that can lead to permanent facial paralysis and hearing loss, will cheer on from the sidelines.

When the pair reunite, “we’re trying to find that rare jewel every time,” reckons Steele. “That’s what keeps it exciting for us.”