Elephant Revival – Break in the Clouds

By Marlee Keeven
Elephant Revival stays true to themselves in their second studio release, Break in the Clouds. Not much has changed stylistically, but musically they’ve become more and more refined.
They are self-proclaimed “transcendental folk,” and this truly describes the band’s sound. Vocally, this doesn’t sound like your typical folk band, but that’s what makes Elephant Revival stand out.
The way in which they match the vocals to the instrumentals creates magic – they all sing with a soft, breathy whisper that makes their sound different from any other when combined with the folk instrumentals.
Elephant Revival is not afraid of letting all their talents shine – all band members sing and most members play multiple instruments (including many string instruments: fiddle, viola, double-bass, guitar, banjo and mandolin), and not to mention a musical saw and washboard, among others.
In some songs, such as “Feathers Rise” and “Black and Silver,” Bridget Law plays fiddle like a classical violin, which serves a role in the band’s overall refined sound. In addition, the fiddle and viola played simultaneously adds to this classical effect throughout the album.
Old time music is always nice, but usually these kinds of bands fail to stand out if they don’t possess some sort of modern edge. Fortunately, Elephant Revival surpasses the test of time. So far they’re not set to play again until February in Telluride and Aspen, but keep an eye on their tour schedule because these guys are best heard live.
www.myspace.com/elephantrevival