NEW YORK, NY. (Top40 Charts/ Rykodisc) - Athens, Georgia's favorite experimental indie-pop band, Elf Power, is back in a big way, and set to release their ninth studio album, "In A Cave," on March 25th, 2008 through Rykodisc. And, to kick-off the new release, The Elves are heading out of their cave and hitting the road in support of the release (with several performances scheduled at SXSW, including a Waterloo in-store performance on Friday, March 14th at 5:00pm). Complete tour dates follow below.
"In A Cave" blasts Elf Power past the familiar territories of their previous records and lands them on exciting new terrain. Granted, the Elves' sound is still founded on the bedrock attributes that make them memorable: leader Andrew Rieger's otherworldly lyrical stances, their easy way with melody, and an overall eclectic approach towards making music.
Rieger comments, "The writing of the new record was a little more collaborative than usual. Eric Harris (drummer/multi-instrumentalist) came to me with some really great instrumental songs, and while on a road trip this past summer I listened to the tracks, coming up with melodies, and scrawling out lyrics as I drove. 12 hours later I had vocal melodies and lyrics for 4 songs, which all ended up on the record. That was definitely a new approach to songwriting for me, as I'm used to writing alone on acoustic guitar."
One of the founding bands of the legendary Athens, Georgia Elephant 6 Collective, Elf Power has been performing and recording since 1994. With "In A Cave," Elf Power finds a perfect synthesis of their solid, instinctual ensemble playing and open-hearted experimentation, and the result is one of the best, most assured records to come soaring out of Athens in a long, long time.
Members of Elf Power also own and operate Orange Twin Records, an independent record label focused squarely on the local community. A percentage of proceeds generated by the label helps fund The Orange Twin Conservation Community, which owns 155 acres of beautiful land on the outskirts of Athens and has initiated the development of a highly progressive, self-sustainable and ecologically-minded cluster village and nature preserve. In keeping with the green theme, Rykodisc will release "In A Cave," printed on recycled paper stock.
Rieger continues, "The Orange Twin Conservation Community is making advances. There's currently one giant farmhouse that a lot of folks live in. It is a house that was originally in Athens that was going to be torn down, so we got it for $1 and moved it five miles out to the land. Another recent development is a chicken coop with about 30 chickens, so between the eggs from the chickens, and vegetables from the garden, there's lots of good, fresh food to be had. The only problem is that the dogs keep getting into the chicken coop and killing the chickens!"
Elf Power on tour 2008:
March 10 Thirsty Hippo Hattiesburg, MS
March 12 Bourbon Rocks Austin, TX (SXSW Athens Music Show)
March 12 Spiro's Austin, TX (SXSW Orange Twin Night)
March 13 Maggie Mae's Austin, TX (SXSW Planetary Presents Skewer BBQ)
March 13 Flamingo Casino Austin, TX (SXSW Under the Radar/Team Clermont Party)
March 14 Waterloo In-Store Austin, TX (Open to the public)
March 15 Spanish Moon Baton Rouge, LA
March 29 40 Watt Athens, GA (CD Release Party)
April 2 The Map Room Charleston, SC
April 3 Duke Coffeehouse Duke University, Durham, NC
April 4 Court Square Theater Harrisonburg, VA
April 5 Johnny Brenda's Philadelphia, PA
April 6 Great Scott Allston, MA
April 7 Mercury Lounge New York, NY
April 8 Union Hall Brooklyn, NY
April 9 SUNY Oswego Oswego, NY
April 10 Grog Shop Cleveland Heights, OH
April 11 Subterranean Chicago, IL
April 12 400 Bar Minneapolis, MN
April 15 High Dive Seattle, WA
April 16 Towne Lounge Portland, OR
April 18 Bottom of the Hill San Francisco, CA
April 19 Spaceland Los Angeles, CA
April 21 Casbah San Diego, CA
April 22 Solar Culture Gallery Tucson, AZ
April 24 8.0 Fort Worth, TX
April 25 Mohawk Austin, TX
April 26 The Mink Houston, TX
Rykodisc, home of Elf Power, is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2008. As a way of saying thanks for supporting our music, Rykodisc is offering five free downloads on the 25th day of each month in 2008. The downloads are available at www.rykodisc.com. Keep listening!
