Erie, Pennsylvania indie power-pop band Radio Empire formed less than a year ago and they’ve already made quite an impact on the western Pennsylvania music scene. Having already released an EP in the spring of 2009, shortly after their formation, the band is set to release their first full-length album at their official CD release show on February 17, playing with the likes of Chicago-based pop-rock band The Audition (who have played at Warped Tour and opened for Jack’s Mannequin, New Found Glory, Boys Like Girls) and Maryland-based The Dangerous Summer.

Their new album, titled “Wishing Well,” is going to have more emphasis on the power rather than the pop. As lead vocalist and guitarist Tyler James said in a recent interview, “Anything that was catchy before is twice as catchy now. Anything that was harder is twice as hard now. We took everything to the next level.”

Radio Empire has the title song of their new album (and all of the songs from their previous EP) up on the band’s MySpace and after listening to it a few times, it’s obvious that the band, which includes Tyler Woodruff and Jess Scutella and a current fill-in show guitarist, has benefited from the chemistry that their summer EP tour provided and they have musically matured over the past year, James’s vocals particularly standing out in the new song.

Considering the explosion of their popularity in less than a year and the promise that the new single offers, this is a band to watch out for. If you’re in the Erie area, you’ll be able to snag their album at the February 17th show (which I am hoping to make) – otherwise, you’ll have to wait until March when its available online via their MySpace, Amazon, and [hopefully] iTunes.

Expect a full album review and maybe even an interview with the band within the coming weeks. In the meantime, here’s the video for “Thursday Calls for No Surprises”, a song from their EP.