Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with City of Sound

Jordan Wright (piano/vocals), Lacey Nova (violin), and Andrew Leigh (guitar), also known as City of Sound, are an independent rock band that the industry (and world) needs right now. The band’s mission is to bring people together and spread an empowering message of hope.

This year, the trio is releasing their debut album, Silent Empire, which they’ve been working hard on for the past few years. As an independent band, it’s a moment and opportunity that they don’t take lightly. Frontman Jordan Wright told Pop Culturalist exclusively, “This might be our only chance to put a full album together. We recognize that and we wanted to put everything we had into the album, knowing this might be our only shot.”

At the heart of the album is a character named Empire, who embarks on a journey of self-reflection. Her journey is broken into three parts, each representing a different stage in that process, and will be released individually throughout the year.

Pop Culturalist spoke with Jordan about Silent Empire, the benefits and challenges of being an independent band, and why the number 12,500 is written in their studio.

PC: Tell us about Silent Empire. What inspired the album?
Jordan: When I started writing the album, I was trying to figure out what we wanted to say. We didn’t want to make an album that didn’t have a message or concept that ran throughout. I landed on what we wanted to say, culturally. It came down to a lot of tribalism and a loss of self-reflection within society. It forced me to look back at how much I’ve changed over the last few years since moving out to L.A. and where I need to change. In society, people often attach themselves to things that identify them instead of taking the choice to face themselves and find out who they really are. I believe that lack of reflection was causing a lot of tribalism within our society.

Then, it became a matter of figuring out how to articulate that in the album and getting that message across. That’s where this idea of a central character named Empire started. There’s a lot of strength and beauty in a feminine feature, and I loved the idea of having this heroine at the heart of the album. It’s her choosing to face herself and recognizing what’s tribal within her and how she used to identify herself. The album is broken into three parts: part one is her recognizing these things, part two is her going through the process, and part three is what happens after she’s gone through the process.

PC: Can you walk us through the decision of breaking the album into three parts?
Jordan: Not only are we independent, but we’re also studio independent. We mix, we master, and we produce all of our own stuff. We distribute our own music. In today’s world, we’re overloaded with a massive amount of music. We wanted to create momentum and start gaining ears.

The first plan was to release every song as a single, but we realized that would lose the concept and message. We really do believe there are three stages in the process of reflection, so we decided to break the album into those three stages.

PC: Are there release dates planned yet for part two and three?
Jordan: Yeah! We just finished the title track, which is opening part two. We’re planning on releasing that single on March 15th, and having a release show on the 16th at The Study in Hollywood.


We’re still in the midst of recording all the songs on part two. We’re shooting for the beginning of the summer and carrying that momentum. Part three will likely hit at the end of the summer and we’re hoping it creates a tsunami for us.

PC: You’ve mentioned that City of Sound is an independent band. What benefits and challenges does that add?
Jordan: [laughs] That can be such a long answer! We chose to go independent. We chose to do it this way, so we have a rule that we’re not allowed to complain about any struggles—all these things are caused by our choices. One of the biggest challenges is we don’t have the resources of a label or big management group for distribution. We’re grass rooting our fan base, which is what we’ve been doing for the last year and a half.
When you’re an independent band, you have to be confident in what you’re doing. We always say that all we need to do is get through the door: if we can get into people’s ears, if we can get in front of them, we can get them as a listener. Andrew, the guitarist in our band, always jokes that I have this irrational confidence. I’m like, “Man, I have to! We’re doing this independently!” If I didn’t think we could be the greatest band in the world, I shouldn’t be doing this. That’s what we strive for. We do everything to the best of our abilities.

Getting into people’s ears is definitely the biggest challenge. If you love anthem rock, if you love that feeling where you can conquer the day, listen to our music.

PC: If you had to pick one song on the album that encompasses the band, what would it be and why?
Jordan: Oh, geez! In part one, I would have to say “The Madhouse”. I love all the songs on part one, but each of us in the band has dealt with or experienced the concept we talk about in “The Madhouse”. Andrew and Lacey, who are totally fine with sharing this, have dealt with severe depression. They’ve dealt with suicide in a real way. That song brings out a lot of the honesty that’s in each of us, and what we want our music to be. We want to be authentic, honest, and gritty at the same time. “The Madhouse” definitely captures that.

PC: Who or what would you say has had the biggest influences on the you and the band’s career?
Jordan: First of all, my wife. When I moved out to L.A., she was living in Canada. We did super long distance and she supported me when I had nothing out there—I had no connections, no studio, nothing. She supported me to the whole time, even to the point where she moved out here when we got married. She’s supported me through everything that I’ve done. She’s been instrumental and given me peace of mind.


She’s always been supportive and pushed me. We would have never played our first show if she didn’t tell me in the car, “You need to book your first show.” We were releasing all these demos without ever playing a show. She’s the one who pushed us to do that. The next day, we booked a show. Of course, our parents have played a huge role as well.

PC: As we look ahead to 2019, what does the year hold for the band?
Jordan: There are a couple of things that I can’t talk about right now, but I wish I could because I’m so excited about them. We’ve set a few goals for ourselves; we want to be a band that practices what we preach. One of our goals is to be able to play 25 cities in front of at least 500 people a night. That’s what we’re striving for as of right now. We have the number 12,500 written down in the studio. It’s how many people we need to accomplish that goal.


I say a lot of cheesy things, but I truly believe them. I want to make sure that we put everything into action. I want the fans we currently have to see us work and grind for this, so we’re really hoping to be able to tour the U.S. this year. We also have a fan base in Europe that we really want to get over to. Those fans have been amazing to us and we feel so bad that they aren’t able to make it to any of our shows. They’re so incredibly awesome, kind, and sweet. I would love nothing more than to pay them back and thank them by coming and screaming in their faces for an hour. [laughs]

Then, we also have a few films that we’re scoring. We got to do a little rendition of a Christmas carol in a horror film that’s coming out at the end of this year, which is hilarious.

For us being an independent band, the biggest thing is consistency. You know I think everybody thinks that there’s going to be one huge opportunity that changes everything, but that’s not realistic. What’s more realistic is if you’re given an opportunity, kick its ass, put your full effort into it, and it’s going to open other doors. At some point, you’re going to find yourself where you want to be. That’s what we’re doing this year. We’re tearing doors down and running through them.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: First album you bought?
Jordan: Third Eyed Blind’s Blue. I bought it five years too late. [laughs] I think I bought it like five years after it came out. I’m not kidding. I’m dead serious.

PC: First concert you attended?
Jordan: Chevelle! Shout out to Chevelle, they’re a Chicago band. Also, Haste the Day was one of my first concerts. They’re a full scream-o metal band.


PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Jordan: Whoa, that’s a good question! Wow. I’m one for words and I think you caught me. That’s such a hard one to answer. I’m going to be so mad at myself because in ten minutes I’m going to think of something.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
Jordan: Chicago House of Blues and the United Center in Chicago. There’s a very subtle shout out to Chicago in “The Madhouse”. The United Center is called the Madhouse of Madison. I love that place. The Chicago House of Blues is one of my favorite venues in the world. Chicago is my favorite city. I was born in a small town in Illinois and grew up in Carmel, Indiana. If I got to perform at the House of Blues, I’d probably be crying the whole time.


PC: What’s something that you have to have on tour?
Jordan: We’re a bunch of meatheads, so besides workout equipment, I have to have hot honey water. That’s my secret. Every morning, I drink a cup of it on tour to keep my voice warm. I’ll drink it right before the show, during the show, and after the show. My aunt and uncle harvest honey and they send me family-farmed honey to L.A.


To keep up with City of Sound, follow them on Twitter and Instagram, and pick up Silent Empire on iTunes or stream it on Spotify.