Instant Empire

Instant Empire hasn’t been together all that long, but that fact isn’t readily apparent from listening to the indie-rockers’ self-titled EP. There’s a certain tightness and a strong sense of dynamics on the three main cuts (there are also a brief intro and short instrumental outro), especially “Without Wires,” which starts fairly tame but builds into an anthemic rocker, with frontman Scotty Saunders powering through the song’s high points. “The Light and the Shadow” is fueled by Alan Alda drummer Matt Grizzell’s intense tom beats and textural guitar work from Sean Connaughty and Tim Brennan, while “Marco Polo” is equally powerful. The EP is so strong, in fact, that it leaves you wanting more. So it’s definitely good to hear that the band is already taking time off from gigging to work on a followup.