The Leeds Gig Guide

Band Biography for cat empire:

The Cat Empire is a large group of musicians, featuring two sets of male vocals, two trumpets, trombone, saxophone, drums, keys, and a DJ, as well as many other instruments. They are based in Melbourne, Australia. Their sound is often described as a fusion of jazz, ska, funk and rock with heavy Latin influences. The band has toured extensively throughout Australia, the US and Europe and has released four distinct albums with the first two reaching double platinum status and the third receiving an ARIA Music Award for best world album. Their fourth album, So Many Nights, was released on 22 September 2007.[1] Their song, Sly, was featured on EA Sports' FIFA 08 Soundtrack and has sold 3 million copies worldwide.

Currently, the Cat Empire comprises Ollie McGill (keyboard and backing vocals), Ryan Monro (bass and backing vocals), Felix Riebl (percussion and vocals), Harry James Angus (trumpet and vocals), Will Hull-Brown (drums) and Jamshid "Jumps" Khadiwhala (decks, percussion). They also have recurring guest musicians. A strong, recurrent theme of their music is a rejection of excessive materialism, war and intolerance and an enthusiastic embrace of cultural diversity and a simple, carefree life. The band treats their fans kindly, doing things like sending out personally messaged and autographed postcards to members of their volunteer promotional teams across Australia.

The band's name was taken from the title of a drawing by Felix Riebl's younger brother, Max, and its distinctive cat's eye icon, which is also known as "Pablo", was created by Ian McGill, Ollie McGill's father.

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