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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Elephant Revival, Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow : Celtic Connections, January 25, 2014.

Wrote this review but it wasn't needed. Thought I'd share it anyway. Terrific band,

REVIEW



The clock above the Old Fruitmarket stage always reads 8 o’clock, but it was over two and a half hours later that Elephant Revival stepped up for a timeless and glorious set that took us warmly into the next day.

The multi instrumentalists from Colorado play a swirling array of songs, sing in gorgeous harmony, and fly into fiery outbursts, led by Bridget Law, whose fiddle playing clearly demonstrates her association with The Battlefield Band and intimate musical Taransay connections. There was a heartfelt freedom and heart-warming feel to the instinctive playing of this quintet through flawless guitar, mandolin, fiddle, washboard, saw and more.

Remembering A Beginning from latest album, “These Changing Skies” brought us husky vocals with a slightly gypsy-backing feel for a refined, pleasing air. At the opposite end of the spectrum, Old Rogue River was a percussion-based, spiritual clap along, while Tam Lin Set, from last year’s seven-track mini album, “It’s Alive,” was typical of the spirited and earthy instrumentals that peppered the set list.

And washboard player, Bonnie Paine’s aching, splintered vocals were utterly beguiling, dazzling joyously in the less boisterous songs. This band is set for even bigger stages.

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