Elonzo » press

Charleston City Paper 11/13/09

admin — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 02:55:44 +0000

Rock Hill-based quartet Elonzo isn’t about sudden moves and bombastic choruses. It’s not about brashness or volume. Elonzo shuffles in subtlety and plaintive comfort. Frontman Jeremy Davis boasts a smooth croon, tempered by a melancholic moan and bolstered by the understated backing his band provides. Sister Maggie Davis Bourdeau sprinkles gentle keyboard phrases behind her brother’s guitars. Her husband, Dan Bourdeau, drives his drum kit firmly, but without frivolity, shuffling below the melody, pushing and pulling against it, coaxing direction from verses and choruses. Even when the band ramps up — as in the conclusion of “Town in the Pines” — with Davis peeling off slabs of guitar noise behind a plunking banjo and Bourdeau’s insistent drumming, its release is all the more effective for the song’s overall restraint. Ultimately, that’s exactly why Elonzo works. The band’s mostly straight-laced and clean-cut alt-country shuffles belie the intensity beneath them, and when that intensity pokes its head, it’s more dynamic than any blustering, scorched bar band could hope to be. The power is in the contrast. They share the stage this Saturday with local songwriter Harrison Ray’s latest act. —Bryan Reed

Album Review: AtlantaMusicBlog.com

admin — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 22:05:01 +0000

hello everybody,

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.

-Eileen Tilson, AtlantaMusicBlog.com

Southeast Performer–04/09

admin — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 16:00:29 +0000

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)