The Review - EL VY - Return To The Moon
Opening notes show so much promise for the band EL VY and their debut album ‘Return to the Moon’ and for the most part it lives up to those notes over the next 42 minutes.
EL VY (pronounced like Elvis plural) is comprised of The National frontman Matt Berninger and producer Brent Knopf. First, yes I know this isn’t a National album; it’s just got the distinctive unmistakable vocals of their shared lead singer. Second, it’s because of the first fact that I can’t shake comparing it to the fantastic last couple of albums from The National camp.
I’m a late adopter to The National but after spending a lot of time with 2013’s ‘Trouble Will Find Me’ (thanks to my wife Erin and her almost exclusive listening habits of that album) and working my way backwards through their catalogue I’ve become a huge fan (as have a lot of folks) of their music. That brings us to Friday with new music from Berninger. Immediately I’m struck with how loose this album sounds compared to the careful composition, moods and feel from The National. No note or word feels wasted with The National but here with EL VY things creep into the pop realm. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing at all, just unexpected.
They open with the strongest song on the album, 'Return to the Moon' (Political Song for Didi Bloome to Sing with Crescendo) but continues into the head scratching song ‘I’m the Man to Be’. 'I'm the Man to Be' highlights a conversation between a man (presumable Berninger) and a woman that feels out of place in the song. The first time I heard it, I looked for a pop up window that could be playing in another window over top of the song before I realized it was on purpose built into the song.
Another really strong song is the slow builder ‘No Time to Crank the Sun’. I really enjoyed the backing choir-esq vocals that filled this song, complimented with a great guitar riff and a piano/keyboard close. The rough sounds of ‘Sad Case’ and how it bleeds right into ‘Happiness, Missouri’ make for a really satisfying rock peak near the album's conclusion. The songs pair so well, you wouldn’t necessarily notice it’s two songs if you weren’t staring at the track list as the songs played.
This is a good album.
This is an album I will listen to again and probably again.
It may even make my list of the best music of 2015.
But it’s also an album that left me still wanting something more and even a little disappointed. It feels like a missed opportunity here and to potentially have reached WAY beyond The National shadow. But maybe that’s not the point. Maybe the point is to make music with different people, challenging comfort zones and it’s up to us, the listener on how we choose to accept it, casting way any preconceptions.
As you can read form the above paragraph it’s an album that has me conflicted and not sure where it sits with me yet. Consequence of Sound wraps their review of the album in a way I feel sums up my feelings, “There are a few flashes of genius on Return to the Moon when given a close listen, suggesting there’s still potential for a great album from the duo — they just need the strength to forget what they know.”
I do know this, I will return for another listen.
Track Listing
1. Return to the Moon (Political Song for Didi Bloome to Sing, with Crescendo)3
2. I'm the Man to Be [
3. Paul Is Alive
4. Need a Friend
5. Silent Ivy Hotel4
6. No Time to Crank the Sun
7. It's a Game
8. Sleeping Light
9. Sad Case
10. Happiness, Missouri
11. Careless
EL VY - Return to the Moon (Political Song for Didi Bloome to Sing, with Crescendo) (Lyric Video)