Elbé - “Together”
Ireland’s Elbé have a gift for blending traditional folk music with artifacts from a modern pop sound. And they have completely blown us away with their latest single, “Together.”
Pressing play on “Together” means taking a journey through a vast and dreamlike landscape. The song begins with bass and reverberated guitar, alongside a seemingly reversed bit of percussion resembling a shaker. A synth pad fades in from the background, creating an ethereal glow around the sonic space– this track is very grounded onto the Earth, while simultaneously bringing a sense of otherworldliness; it could both be the soundtrack to simpler times and some unknown future.
Seamus Allen’s vocals have that modern folk sound to them, instantly reminiscent of a fantastic blend of some of our favorite voices, including those of earlier Bon Iver and Foot Shooter. They seem to be organically doubled, with minimal processing, and they very effortlessly glide between a natural tenor and falsetto– just the way we like them. The song is soon joined by more percussion and an organ, opening itself in order to saturate the entire listening space.
In lieu of a bridge, the last third of “Together” takes a slight left turn into, as John Michie describes it, “complete stoner heaven,” with a wave of glorious reverb falling across the entire production. It’s the sonic equivalent of reading the final chapter of a book where every foreshadowed detail ultimately falls into place, leaving you with nothing to do but stare at the cover for a few minutes before beginning the story all over again. And we hope that you begin this one again.
-TM