The Cat Empire (album)

Infobox Album | Name = The Cat Empire
Type = Album
Artist = The Cat Empire


Released = October 24 2003
Recorded = 2003
Genre = Alternative
Length = 55:07
Label = EMI/Virgin
Producer = Anthony Baldwin and The Cat Empire
Reviews =
Last album =
This album = "The Cat Empire"
(2003)
Next album = "Two Shoes"
(2005)

"The Cat Empire" is the eponymous studio debut album of Melbourne band The Cat Empire. Released in October 2003 in Australia, it went platinum in that country in February 2004.

Recording of the album

The band recorded its debut studio album in seven months during 2003 with producer Andy Baldwin in Melbourne. They recorded the album in-between touring Australia, playing at the St Kilda Festival with Kate Ceberano and appearing at the Byron Bay Blues & Roots Festival in April 2003. The band was nominated in two categories at the Australian Jazz Awards. The band successfully applied for an International Pathways grant from The Australia Council for the Arts.

The band was featured in a BBC Television 4 on the 2003 WOMAD Festival where the band appeared. Their track "Two Shoes" was placed on high rotation on BBC Radio 1 in August 2003. The bands growing live and critical reputation put them in a great position to approach record companies for a record deal for their self-financed, self-titled debut album in the middle of 2003. The band signed a deal with EMI's Virgin Records subsidiary.

Chart and Live Success

The first single "Hello" was released in October 2003 with a film clip that was Channel V's clip of the week ahead of Justin Timberlake. The Cat Empire was released in November 2003, debuting in the top 20 of the ARIA Top 50 album chart with Triple J nominating it as their album of the week in November. High profile appearances on "Rove (Live)" with Rove McManus and "The Panel" on Network Ten helped raise the profile of the album helping it to go gold in Australia by December 2003.

"Hello" finished at number 6 on the Triple J Hottest 100 for 2003, one of the biggest music polls in the world with album track "Days Like These" at number 37 and "The Chariot" at number 100.

"Days Like These" was the second single reaching the top 40 of the ARIA singles charts in early 2004. Their debut album went platinum in February 2004. Their third single "The Chariot" debuted in the ARIA top 40 in May 2004.

The Cat Empire played at the opening ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne to a stadium audience of thousands and a television audience of millions.

Track listing

# "How to Explain" – 3:37
# "Days Like These" – 4:07
# "The Lost Song" – 3:15
# "The Chariot" – 5:34
# "Hello" – 3:44
# "One Four Five" – 3:24
# "The Rhythm" – 3:24
# "The Wine Song" – 7:22
# "Nothing" – 3:39
# "Beanni" – 2:19
# "The Crowd" – 5:13
# "Manifesto" – 2:34
# "All That Talking" – 6:54

External links

* [http://www.thecatempire.com/ce_stage_menu.html The Cat Empire Home Page]