Discogs
Artist Biography
by Jason Ankeny
The Athens, Georgia-based
Elf Power
emerged as part of the second wave of bands linked to the Elephant 6
Recording Company collective, a coterie of like-minded lo-fi indie
groups -- including
the Apples (In Stereo),
Neutral Milk Hotel, and
the Olivia Tremor Control -- who shared musicians, ideas, and sensibilities. Formed by singers/multi-instrumentalists
Andrew Rieger and
Laura Carter,
Elf Power debuted in 1995 with the self-released
Vainly Clutching at Phantom Limbs, followed a year later by the
Winter Hawk EP, which heralded the additions of bassist
Bryan Helium and drummer
Aaron Wegelin. The excellent
When the Red King Comes appeared in late 1997, and two years later the group returned with
A Dream in Sound; also in the spring of 1999, a series of live dates with
the Olivia Tremor Control yielded the tour-exclusive EP
Come On.
Winter Is Coming followed a year later. In 2002, the group released the conceptual record
Creatures (which saw the amicable departure of bassist
Bryan Helium) and
Nothing's Going to Happen, a collection of covers ranging from
Gary Numan to
the Misfits. Two years later, the group returned with
Walking with the Beggar Boys, a decidedly more straightforward offering that included new members
Eric Harris (formerly of
the Olivia Tremor Control) and
Craig McQuiston (formerly of
the Glands). After switching to Rykodisc,
Elf Power issued their eighth album,
Back to the Web, in 2006.
In a Cave followed two years later. In 2010,
Elf Power
returned with a self-titled studio effort dedicated to the band's
longtime collaborator Vic Chestnutt, who had passed away in 2009.
Arriving in 2013,
Elf Power's 11th full-length,
Sunlight on the Moon, was a return to the spontaneous creation and bedroom-recording process of their earliest days.
Tracklist
1 |
Step Through The Portal... |
|
2 |
Into The Everlasting Time |
|
3 |
The Frightened Singers |
|
4 |
The Secret Ocean |
|
5 |
The Arrow Flies Close |
|
6 |
Icy Hands Will Never Melt Away |
|
7 |
When The Red King Comes |
|
8 |
The Separating Fault |
|
9 |
Spectators |
|
10 |
Introducing Cosmic Space |
|
11 |
The Bengal Parade |
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12 |
Needles In The Camels Eyes... |
|
13 |
The Silver Lake |
|
14 |
It's Been A Million Years |