By Dion Smith, Journalist, and Paula Smith, Photographer
Live Review: Elephant Stone – Crofters Rights – Bristol – April 27th 2024
At the Crofters Rights in the heart of Bristol, it was the turn of Canadian rock outfit Elephant Stone to take to the stage. This intimate venue provided the perfect setting for an evening of psychedelic /indie rock with an added twist of traditional Indian music thrown in to the mix for good measure.
When I arrived at the venue the band were still finalising their sounds with front of house, and one glance at the stage floor told me that there would be a vast array of sounds and textures coming from the house speakers tonight. Especially from guitarist Robbie MacArthur whose pedalboard looked like something out of the starship enterprise.
Vocalist / bassist and songwriter Rishi Dhir takes to the stage barefoot and perches himself with his sitar on a small riser at the front of the stage, and after a brief moment of sitar improvisation he signals to the band that he is ready to begin. The excited audience no more than a metre away from the stage begin to cheer in anticipation of what is to come.
Miles Dupire-Gagnon (drums), Robbie McArthur (guitar / backing vocals) and Jason Kent (Keys / Guitar) join Rishi onstage and treat the audience to an atmospheric sitar and synth driven introduction to their first song of the night “Heavy Moon”.
Rishi is now standing front and centre and behind his microphone and has swapped his sitar for a sturdy Rickenbacker bass. Heavy Moon has a driving drum rhythm and Rishi’s locked in bass part has the audience dancing as soon as this song begins, a very good sign that there’s a night of great music and enjoyment ahead.
Next came “Setting Sun” with it’s catchy and melodic guitar rhythms interspersed with ambient lead guitar and has Robbie frequently reaching down to his pedalboard to adjust his many pedals. It is apparent that Robbie has some very unusual and quite beautiful sounding tones coming from his guitar rig.
Then came “On Our Own” with a smoothly delivered vocal performance by Rishi which led into the upbeat and fantastic “Lost in a Dream”. The high energy drum and bass rhythm is driving this song forward and as I glance back at the crowd they are having a fantastic time and getting lost in the music. This track is my favourite of the night without a doubt and the backing vocals from Robbie and Jason compliment Rishi’s lead vocal perfectly.
Then came ”Going Underground” another high energy track with driving guitar rhythms, which then swiftly leads onto the slower paced “Imaginary, Nameless Everybody in the World”. “Silence can say so much” came next and sees Rishi back on sitar duties with Jason’s atmospheric synth work now filling in the bass and low end of the track.
One of the most striking aspects of Elephant Stone’s live performance is their ability to seamlessly blend genres, effortlessly transitioning from psychedelic rock to indie-pop and then incorporating elements of traditional Indian music. Tracks like “Silence can say so much” really showcase the band’s versatility, with each member demonstrating great musicianship and a deep connection to the music.
Then came “Three Poisons” from the 2014 album of the same name, followed by “La fusee du chagrin”. Rishi asks the crowd if anyone can speak French to which one individual replies “Bonjour” which causes some amusement in the audience. La fusee is another high energy track and I feel the band are gradually building into something darker and more intense sounding as the night moves forward.
Then came a mammoth medley of “Sally Goes Around the Sun”, “Darker Time Darker Space”,”The court and the jury” and “Land of Dead” which again showcases the bands musicianship and was interspersed with long instrumental passages, ambient guitar textures and layered melodic vocals.
Then came “Pilgrimage” and “Don’t You Know” which was immediately followed by the Beatles cover “Norwegian Wood.”
Last but not least came “A Silent Moment” which was definitely a highlight of the evening and had the audience captivated by Rishi’s haunting vocals and infectious bass line. This is indeed a stand out track for Elephant Stone.
As the night came to a close, I can say that Elephant Stone delivered a captivating performance and their ability to create immersive sonic landscapes for their audience is a testament to their artistry and musicianship. For those lucky enough to be in attendance at the Crofters Rights Bristol, it was definitely a night to be remembered and was a fantastic and well delivered performance.
PHOTO GALLERY
Link to Rock At Night’s review of Back into the Dream
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