We got another great review out of Hotlanta. This time from atlantamusicblog.com. Its pretty great and honest, which I appreciate. Also, if you’re ever in or going to Atlanta, you should check out the AMG. I used it all the time when I lived there to find cool shows to go to, in a past life.
-J
Alblum Review: “All My Life”
Dan Bourdeau, drummer for South Carolina band Elonzo, explains that a lot of the inspiration his wife and brother-in-law received in putting together their debut album, All My Life, comes from the post-Victorian home on E. White St. in Rock Hill, S.C., that the three of them live in: “It remains beautiful despite being a bit dilapidated.” This illusion provides the perfect back drop to Elonzo’s sound. Despite the fact that their songs are simple and dripping of sad introspection of a self proclaimed sinner, they are an honest representation of a sweet southern town, in which time seems to stand still.
The album was literally produced inside this battered house, thus the reason for the occasional background noise and train horns, that ironically add to the flavor of this low country boil Each song seems to be a page right out of songwriter Jeremy Davis’ journal, wise beyond his years, yet somewhat unbelievable. With the background of bluegrass guitars and banjo picking, Davis seems to be channeling the spirit of John Steinbeck.
Like the Old 97’s and Band of Horses, Elonzo seems to capture the heart of Americana. The album could easily be the soundtrack to Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison and Kris Kristofferson hopping a train, watching the tumbleweeds roll by, all while talking about their past lives. All My Life epitomizes the art of Southern storytelling, exaggerated, yet completely heartfelt.
I just uploaded a new demo version of a song “Dont be Downhearted” for you to hear. Go to www.reverbnation.com/elonzo, the song is at the bottom of the player. We get cool points if you go download. It will probably be a while till I get a full version with the whole band recorded since we are still working on our EP. Also, our t-shirts shipped today, and Dan has almost finished redesigning the whole website. Its gonna be sweet.
Our good friend Brandon Oxendine has graciously donated his time and talent towards creating two incredible illustrations that we will be using on T-shirts and posters. Check out his other artwork, we like it a lot. Below is an approximate mock-up of what he shirts will probably look like when all is said and done.
Jeremy will be flying through the airwaves at 2pm, May 13. Tune in to WGWG at 88.3 FM or stream the live broadcast here. Jeremy will be playing a couple tracks of Elonzo’s debut album, “All My Life,” and a few newly written songs.
So, we are very pleased to announce that the current edition of Southeast Performer features a review of our debut album, “All My Life”. You can check out the review at the online e-reader or read it in its entirety below. Thanks Performer Mag!
Simple and sweet, Elonzo’s debut album is on that fully relects the band’s South Carolina surroundings. With brush strokes of bluegrass, folk and hard-working Americana, the trio’s music paints pictures of the Blue Ridge Mountains and lush forest hiking trails.
The quiet nature of their songs is felf through quick rootsy quitar picking, as found in “About Last Night,” or in the slow swing tempo of songs like “Fool’s Gold.”
Still, Elonzo’s take on folk tunes are not dated or tired rehashings of the past. Like Band of Horses, or even the later works of Conor Oberst, the band bottles the soul of its musical inspiration, yet still manages to build on it in a relevant way. This is seen greatly in the lyrics written by quitarist Jeremy Davis. All My Life is an album that tackles the same issues that have always plagued songwriters, only this time the working man has insurance to worry about and the religious man acknowledges his sin but does not always try to correct his wrong doings. Most of their tracks surround a type of journey that has no real end point, the suspensions that are felt as we move through life. This is especially so in the song “Forty Miles to Asheville,” which details a sort of never ending road trip of self-discovery.
All My Life is an album that was literally produced in-hous by the members of Elonzo. All the recordings were done at one of the member’s homes. Because of this there are occasional stints of background noise, but they usually prove to be edearing rather than distracting. The overall sound of the recorded track could be more robust with more layered instrumentation, but for a self-made debut this record is truly something to treasure. -Nico Stahl (Southeast Performer Magazine)
I’m not sure if you could call two gigs in two days a tour of any kind, but for the sake the argument we will just go ahead and call it a “mini-tour”. On Thursday we sojourned to Spindale, NC at the invitation of WNCW, to play an on-air performance in Studio B (see: 26 minute below). Our good friend John from The Heavy Sandwich filled in for Maggie, seeing as she could not make it on a Thursday, it all went swimmingly… thanks John! On Friday we all met up in Johnson City, TN to play a gig with our new friends The Scapes. Thanks for everyone that showed up and supported our Tennesee debut, hopefully there will plenty more to come.
In an attempt to be trendy and keep our blog current, we have uploaded a music video for your listening pleasure. The video it Jeremy’s version of Ms. Lucinda Williams wonderful song “People Talkin’”. Now, we are not too sure of the legalities of this recording (if anyone could clear that up for us we would appreciate it), but considering that we will make no money off of it and we have very few personal assets I don’t think we have a whole lot to worry about. Anyway, enjoy!
So, we have played a couple different shows now with our new friend Dennis. Everyone seems to agree that he is a good fit, and he plays contra-bass (double bass), so BA factor. I would have to agree that he is a great fit and a cool dude. Good things to come my friends! Good things.
Well its the day after Christmas, and we’re pretty much done for the year. Three shows this past weekend, back and forth to Charleston during the holidays, and trying to rest up. We’ve got some new prospects (possible bandmates) on the horizon and are lining up shows for the new year. Hopefully we will be coming to your town soon, or maybe you’ll be coming to our town, or maybe your already in our town. Either way, we will be seeing you. Hope your having a good holiday. Ours could better( Ma Karen has been in the hospital), but I guess it could always be worse. One.
As many of you may know, the Elonzo crew is based out of Rock Hill, SC. So, we very regularly forgo the trip to Charlotte for a night/day in town. We figured that since there is not always an update to post that pertains to the band, we could start a series that lists some of the things that we like to do around Rock Hill. I’m not too sure how short or long this list might become, but we will try to keep it current. Also, if anyone has suggestions for a business/place to go on the list, let us know.
I think it would be appropriate to start this list with the Old Town Bistro, since I’ve spent so muh time there. “The Bistro” is located right on Main Street in the downtown area of Rock Hill. They have done a nice job renovating the space and have succesfully created a comfortable atmosphere that a few others on Main Street should take note of. Also, quite a bit of history has taken place in the building; the location was home to a civil rights era “sit-in” that helped bring about change in Rock Hill and also throughout the Southeast (check out their website).
“The Bistro” proves that a nice atmosphere, consistently tasty food, and low prices don’t have to be mutually exclusive factors when looking for a nice place to eat any night of the week. I’m not sure how many times the Elonzo crew has indulged in a spontaneous meal at “The Bistro” but it is probably just shy of the triple digit range. With a judicial use of funds you can take a date and spend just a little more than $10, if you both drink water and order sandwiches…
Recomended eats: gyro, meatloaf, and the Mediteranean burger.
