“We didn’t even intend for this to be a band,” he laughs. “When we made the first record, we figured it would be dead in a week. So we just put everything into it.”

That debut album captured the most iconic Star Wars themes, riding the novelty factor and immediate recognition of John Williams’ legendary compositions. The follow-up, however, took a different path — diving into deeper cuts and more progressive arrangements.

“I don’t think the first album will ever be beaten in overall reception,” he admits. “It had all the iconic stuff. The second one exists because we could. We love the songs, but this band doesn’t really operate under conventional band rules.”

And that unconventional nature may be Galactic Empire’s greatest strength.

Winning Over the Skeptics

Metal audiences are famously protective of authenticity, something the band understood from the start. A group performing Star Wars music in costume could easily be dismissed as parody — until people actually witness the musicianship.

“There’s a lot of elitism in metal,” Dark Vader explains. “The gimmick makes people go, ‘Hold on…’ But once someone gives us a chance, they usually enjoy it. We’re very self-aware. We know it’s absurd.”

Ironically, the more adventurous second album helped pull in a different crowd — listeners intrigued less by nostalgia and more by technical performance.

“We’ve definitely turned some heads in the music nerd community,” he says. “Even if people just walk past the stage, they’re curious enough to stop.”

Turning Film Scores Into Metal

Adapting John Williams’ orchestral work into heavy guitar arrangements is far from straightforward. Unlike traditional metal songwriting, the material offers little repetition and almost no familiar structural patterns.

“Playing John Williams is nothing like playing a regular metal song,” he explains. “Nothing repeats. There are no power chords. It’s all over the place.”

The band’s early recordings required heavy editing simply because they were still learning how to physically perform the music together.

“The first album was basically us recording a few notes at a time and stitching it together,” he says. “By the second record we’d been touring, we understood the style better, and it sounded much more organic.”

Touring experience transformed Galactic Empire from a studio curiosity into a functioning live unit — something clearly felt during their festival-heavy European run.

“Graspop was probably my favorite show of the tour,” he recalls. “We don’t really understand how we got the crowd we did, but we were very happy with it.”

A Band That Breaks Industry Rules

Because Galactic Empire was never designed as a traditional band, success and failure carry different meanings.

“If our second record flops, it doesn’t really matter,” Dark Vader shrugs. “The gimmick is still there.”

That honesty becomes part of the project’s charm. Rather than resisting the theatrical concept, the musicians embrace it fully while delivering performances strong enough to stand on their own.

The Galaxy Still Awaits

Despite extensive touring across the United States and Europe, several dream destinations remain on the band’s radar.

“I really want to do Japan and Australia,” he says immediately. “I think sci-fi nerd culture would really embrace it there — and the metal scenes are strong.”

Canada, meanwhile, keeps reminding them they’ve yet to visit.

“Every time we announce a tour, people comment: ‘Still no Canada?’ So yeah… we want to go everywhere.”

Running Out of Star Wars?

With Galactic Empire drawing exclusively from John Williams’ Star Wars compositions, the question naturally arises: what happens when the music runs out?

“We joked about moving on to other John Williams stuff,” he laughs. “Maybe Darth Vader puts on a fedora and we play Indiana Jones.”

More realistically, the band may simply continue performing existing material as long as audiences keep showing up.

“We’ll probably just keep playing shows until people stop caring.”

Dancing With Disney

Operating within one of the world’s biggest entertainment franchises inevitably raises legal questions. Surprisingly, the band has never had direct contact with Disney despite attempts to reach out.

“We tried everything — contact forms, industry connections — nobody ever responded,” he says. “So we just play it safe.”

That means non-infringing stage costumes, licensed music releases, and avoiding monetization of certain videos. It’s a careful balancing act between homage and legality — one the band navigates quietly behind the scenes.

The Reality Behind the Mask

While audiences see cinematic spectacle, life inside the armor is far less glamorous.

“We hate the original costumes,” Dark Vader admits. “You can’t really play properly in them.”

Music video shoots can mean eight hours trapped inside layered suits, unable to remove helmets without assistance.

“I’m the only one who can’t reach my head because of the shoulder piece,” he laughs. “If I need water, someone literally has to come remove my helmet and give me a drink.”

The dark side, it seems, is extremely warm.

Still Expanding the Empire

Even as Tuska marked the end of a long European run, Galactic Empire showed no signs of slowing down.

“We always have stuff in the pipeline,” Dark Vader concludes. “Just keep your eyes peeled.”

For a project born almost accidentally, Galactic Empire continues to prove that passion, musicianship, and a sense of humor can turn even the most unlikely idea into a lasting force — somewhere between fandom celebration and legitimate metal phenomenon.

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