“Walking on a Dream” by Australian duo Empire of the Sun is the song behind Honda’s current ads, the one with the car on a roller coaster in the sky with the hot air balloons and other whimsical and magical imaginations.
When we listen to the song we hear a dreamy hook, threads of lyrics floating through the verses, sounding good but without any literal meaning, except for the basic premise, which is about that wonderful and rapturous feeling that goes with the “this is our destiny” kind of falling in love.
Elements of the song are rooted in 80’s hits like “Caribbean Queen” but what it really, really sounds like is Hall & Oates’ 1984 hit “Out Of Touch” — that same easy breezy smooth and slippery sound.
Even though “Walking on a Dream” was an international success in 2008, when it was first released, it just didn’t happen in the U.S., but now, due to the exposure via the Honda ads, it’s been re-invigorated, and is climbing the Alternative and Adult Top 40 charts.
RE the video: Both Luke Steele and Nick LIttlemore were students of the visual arts, and it shows in their video: Creative scenes and surreal images, with lots of Japanese influence, similar to “A Hard Day’s Night” with the musicians bopping all over the place, with different outfits, and hats, and scenery. Odd and different.
Steele is 36-years old; Littlemore is 37.
Empire of the Sun is a 1984 novel by English writer J. G. Ballard, about the Japanese occupation of Shanghai during WWII.