Course of Empire (band)

This article is about the band. For other uses, see Course of Empire (disambiguation).

Course of Empire
Course of Empire, 1994 Course of Empire, 1994
Background information
Origin	Dallas, Texas
Genres	Industrial rock, alternative rock, alternative metal, post-punk
Years active	1988–1998
Labels	Carpe Diem Records Zoo Entertainment TVT Records
Members	Vaughn Stevenson Mike Graff Paul Semrad Chad Lovell Michael Jerome Kyle Thomas Anthony Headley
Website	CourseOfEmpire.com

Course of Empire was an industrial/alternative rock band based in Dallas, Texas, from 1988 to 1998. The band's final incarnation consisted of founding members vocalist Vaughn Stevenson, guitarist Mike Graff, and bassist Paul Semrad. The band also consisted of two drummers throughout their existence, with Chad Lovell and Michael Jerome as the final duo. The band released three studio albums over ten years, with one each on the labels Carpe Diem, Zoo Entertainment (who also re-issued the band's debut album), and TVT Records.

History

First studio album and major label signing (1988–1993)

Course of Empire was formed by vocalist Vaughn Stevenson, guitarist Mike Graff, bassist Paul Semrad, and drummer Anthony Headley in 1988. One year later, after witnessing a performance by the Kodo Drummers, the band enlisted Chad Lovell as their second drummer. The band's first release was a self-titled record, released on Carpe Diem Records in 1990. After a few tours, Headley was dismissed from the band and was replaced by Kyle Thomas from Reverend Horton Heat. The band then signed with major label Zoo Entertainment, who re-issued the Course of Empire album nationally in early 1992. "Coming of the Century" was released as the band's first promotional single and music video. After the supporting tours, Thomas left the band and Michael Jerome joined as his replacement.

In 1993, Course of Empire released the single "Infested" in anticipation of their second album. The single featured two new songs, "Joy" and "Let's Have a War" (a cover of a song by Fear), as well as a "Darwin Goodman" remix of "Infested". The name was taken from Darwin (naturalist/evolutionary scientist Charles Darwin) and Goodman (legendary big band clarinetist Benny Goodman).

Continued recording and label shifts (1993–1996)

The band released their second album, Initiation, on Zoo Entertainment in 1994. The physical CD had notably featured three hidden tracks on various spots of the release. "White Vision Blowout" and the aforementioned "Infested" were released as singles to promote the album. They toured behind the album with the likes of Prong, Sister Machine Gun, Machines of Loving Grace, and Stabbing Westward. In 1995, producer John Fryer, known for producing acts such as Nine Inch Nails, was tapped to produce their third record, as it featured more electronic-edged material. In 1996, the band's song "Copious" (off of the Course of Empire album) appeared on the soundtrack to the film The Pompatus of Love. Soon after, the band found support in Dallas radio personality and In the Studio host Redbeard, who promoted the band's third album weeks ahead of release on Dallas radio station Q102, including heavy airplay of "New Maps", which was scheduled to be the lead single.

The Zoo record label subsequently folded in July 1996, just one month before the album was due to be released. TVT Records signed the band by December 1996 after working out the licensing terms with BMG for the rights to the then-upcoming album and the previous Initiation record. At TVT's request, the band recorded additional tracks with drummer Lovell as producer. The new tracks were mixed in Hollywood at Larrabee Studios North with Dave Bianco at the helm. Some previous tracks were also remixed by Bianco.

Final release and disbandment (1996–1998)

Course of Empire's third album Telepathic Last Words, originally mastered by Bob Ludwig for the Zoo release, was re-mastered by Howie Weinberg in September 1997 and was finally released in January 1998, almost two years after its original completion. As part of the new deal, the scheduled national lead single was changed from "New Maps" to "The Information". "The Information" was included on the soundtrack for the 1998 film Dark City. A music video was also produced featuring scenes from the movie and was aired on MTV at the time of the movie's premiere. The band received favorable press in the form of a two-page cover story in a local alternative weekly news magazine, the Dallas Observer, as well as mentions in Spin and trade publications; however, a lack of promotion by the record company prevented the song from seeing a wide release on modern rock playlists across the United States. "The Information" was picked up by Q102 after the success of "New Maps" on Redbeard's show, but failed to gain traction and was dropped from the playlist by 1998. "Kaptain Kontrol" was also released as a promotional single. The band supported the album by touring with 2wo, an industrial rock project headed by Rob Halford (Judas Priest) alongside John 5 (Marilyn Manson), Ray Riendeau (Machines of Loving Grace), and James Woolley (Nine Inch Nails). Course of Empire also opened for The Sisters of Mercy in Los Angeles that spring.

The group disbanded after ten years together over frustration with management, booking, and lack of a proper A&R representative. Their final show was in July 1998 at Trees in the Deep Ellum area of Dallas. Taking the stage after local opening acts Caulk and Doosu, Course of Empire performed some of their earlier songs, including most of the Initiation album, instead of concentrating on the then-new material from Telepathic Last Words.

Following years

In 2004, Graff and Martin Baird at Verge Music Works recording studio mixed the still-existing 24 tracks of the final performance at Trees and personally financed and self-released the tracks, titled Phone Calls From the Dead. After the group split in 1998, Jerome and Graff collaborated with Van Eric Martin to form the group Halls of the Machine, who released their debut album, Atmospheres for Lovers and Sleepers, in 2001. Jerome later became the final drummer for the post-grunge band Better Than Ezra.

In 2019, it was revealed that Lovell had experienced a fall that left him with a traumatic brain injury. His former bandmates in Course of Empire decided to release a compilation entitled Fields of Discipline, which consisted of two-track demos recorded by the band in 1989. The material was previously unreleased up to that point. A Dallas listening party and drum jam occurred on October 25, 2021 in support of Lovell.

Members

• Vaughn Stevenson – vocals (1988–1998)
• Mike Graff – guitar (1988–1998)
• Paul Semrad – bass (1988–1998)
• Anthony Headley – drums (1988–1991)
• Chad Lovell – drums (1989–1998)
• Kyle Thomas – drums (1991–1993)
• Michael Jerome – drums (1993–1998)

Timeline

Discography

Albums

• 1990: Course of Empire (Carpe Diem Records)
• 1994: Initiation (Zoo Entertainment)
• 1998: Telepathic Last Words (TVT Records)

Compilations

• 2004: Phone Calls From the Dead (Live album/released on Lust)
• 2004: Hiss (DVD/Self-released)
• 2008: Initiation Demos (Demo album/Self-released)
• 2013: Early C.O.E. & Telepathic Last Show (Live album and studio tracks/Self-released)
• 2021: Fields of Discipline (Previously unreleased 1989 album/released on IDBLM)

Singles

• 1992: "Coming of the Century"
• 1993: "Infested"
• 1994: "White Vision Blowout"
• 1997: "The Information"
• 1998: "Kaptain Kontrol"
• 2021: "Thrust"

External links

• Official site