Ring Around the Moon :: Elephant Revival

Today's guest blog is from Kathryn.

So this past weekend I had the pleasure of a fun-filled music weekend. Although I saw the Indigo Girls with Bitch and Ferron on Sunday and it was a very good show (and they played some new music from their self-produced album out in winter because they were dropped from their major label-BOO!). However, I am writing because I saw a great local-ish band on Friday night, Elephant Revival Concept and I want people to know about them, check them out, and love them too.

I was at Ye Old Rock Inn (local bluegrass bar) in Estes Park and saw a really great band called Elephant Revival who are self-described as Experimental/Americana/Folk but with an amazing bluegrass/roots twist. They are out of Nederland, Colorado-which to most people in these parts is Hippie-ville and just down the road from the EP. I hate to attribute a band's wealth to one person but honestly one of their female vocalists, Bonnie Paine, is AMAZING-and she plays the washboard, which is one of the coolest things EVER to watch. Her original band from Oklahoma is My-Tea Kind and they are also really good and different-an obscure folk rock group.

The band combines fiddle, acoustic guitar, upright bass, the cello, electric banjo, and even djembe and the occasional saw to create their unique sound. One moment they may be busting out a roots reggae tune, the next they are playing Irish Celtic folk music, and yet can also pick a traditional bluegrass song with the best of them. Seeing them live was a fantastic experience also because the crowd is so into them and loves to kick their heels up and dance to whatever they might be playing at the moment. ER are inspired by the crowd and it is obvious the crowd also becomes pretty inspired throughout the course of the show by the music coming from the stage.

I am going to choose the song Ring Around the Moon for my Song of the Day because it showcases Paine's soulful and slightly eerie vocal stylings-however, I am not convinced that this is the best representative of their music as a whole since they are so multi-talented. If you get a chance to hit their myspace page I would highly recommend the semi-political song A Part, and the Reel Mckay Wedding. I can't find the lyrics but I'm not sure they are necessary. Just hear the song, let it wash (board) over you and become entranced by the incredible talents of Elephant Revival.

Here is a video of that Ring Around the Moon:



But I also want to provide another video from Nederland's Frozen Dead Guy Days where they played and you can see how completely different the music is and there's also a really amazing washboard solo:



So if you like your bluegrass with altitude as I do then listen to them, let them make you feel happy and then buy their stuff so that they can continue!