Review: Elephant Tree & Lowrider ‘The Long Forever’
A thundering, pounding bass line kicks off the seven-song split album from Elephant Tree and Lowrider, and I must admit, it’s a bit of a cracker from start to finish. Lowrider starts things off, with four songs, one featuring Elephant Tree, and then three songs from Elephant Tree, with one, the title track, featuring Lowrider.
It gives each band an opportunity to showcase their respective talents whilst also working collaboratively on some damn fine music, and they complement each other exceptionally well. The title itself is taken from the ‘nickname Elephant Tree singer and guitarist Jack Townley gave to the multi-week coma he was kept in for medical reasons following a near-fatal biking accident in early 2023’. And that traumatic incident has led to Elephant Tree going for a sound that is a bit more raw and ready to go.
As mentioned, the opening tracks belong to Lowrider, and And The Horse You Rode In On is a song that will get you out of the saddle and moving about the place. It’s got a groove flowing throughout, it’s intense but uplifting, and being a little short of three minutes, it’s a perfect way to start. Then we get the progressive masterpiece that is Caldera. As Peder Bergstrand, bassist/vocalist/songwriter said it’s ‘actually like four songs in one 10-minute song’ as it ebbs and flows, focusing on the musical composition, which in parts is subtle, slow and moody, but allowing the band to shine through.
drifts along effortlessly with an almost cathartic feel…
Into The Grey is next up, and with that fuzzy guitar intro, it kicks into a heavy but ultimately brooding song with a slightly psychedelic feel and excellent guitar work before we get Through The Rift, the first of two collaborations which drifts along effortlessly with an almost cathartic feel.
Then we come to the first Elephant Tree track. I was massively disappointed that they pulled out of the recent Riffolution Festival due to, I think, illness, as I was really looking forward to seeing them, and the nine minutes plus of Fucked In The Head confirmed what a loss they were to the weekend. It’s haunting, mesmerising and quite a spectacular piece of music that leaves you feeling a bit emotionally cold and numb.
This is followed up by 4 For 2, not sure if it’s a dated reference to a football team set up or not, but it again demonstrates how good they are as musicians as it rumbles along with an enigmatic, almost ghoulish rhythm that will resonate with lots of people. It all ends with the second collaboration, Long Forever which instantly feels heavier, yet steeped in sadness and sorrow, but as stated on the press statement, ‘in the end, perseverance, healing and stubbornness of passion are what made The Long Forever a reality’, and I for one are really glad it did.
Label: Blues Funeral Recordings
Elephant Tree: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Lowrider: Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Matthew Williams
