Years ago in Athens, Ga., singer-songwriter Andrew Rieger was walking down the street when he saw something etched into the sidewalk. Someone had written two words in the cement: “”Elf Power.”” Inspired by this chance encounter, Rieger’s newly formed band chose its unusual name.
Elf Power is a rock band with elements of folk, punk and psychedelic music. The group formed in 1994 and has since released 10 albums, two EPs and several singles. They have also toured the world over the past 16 years, visiting numerous locations in the U.S., Europe and Japan.
This fall, Elf Power released their latest album, which is self-titled. In addition, they’re hitting the streets on a national tour — which includes a stop at the Solar Culture Gallery in Tucson.
Last week, Wildlife got a chance to speak with Rieger, both about the new album and the upcoming show. Rieger explained that this record is different than what Elf Power has done before, because the band spent eight or nine months writing the tracks. The album is a collaborative effort of all the band members, which allowed them to create a diverse set of songs.
The music is mellow, pleasant and harmonious, and each piece is unique in its own way. Rieger said his favorite song is the second track, entitled “”Wander Through”” because “”It doesn’t sound really like anything we’ve ever done. It’s a strange and odd song, but at the same time, still melodic and pretty. It captures several moods simultaneously, and I like that.””
And the songs aren’t the only thing that Elf Power is approaching differently. Another exciting aspect of the tour is that each concert will begin with a showing of the short film, “”Major Organ and the Adding Machine,”” which is a mysterious and anonymous collective of musicians who have released a self-titled album and several songs over the past few years. Fans of this music have been anxiously awaiting the film’s arrival, in hopes of learning the identities of the Major Organ musicians. The film was finally released this fall by Orange Twin Records. It was co-directed by Elf Power’s drummer Eric Harris, and Rieger is also an actor in the film.
“”It features a lot of musicians from Athens, members of bands like Neutral Milk Hotel and Of Montreal,”” Rieger said. “”A lot of Athens musicians collaborated on the film and the soundtrack, and (Elf Power) thought it would be cool to have something different as an opening act rather than just a bunch of bands playing … It’s kind of a surreal children’s story, and people have been responding well to it so far.””
Elf Power’s music, film, and show are all creative and unique projects, so the band is worth checking out. If you like melodic tunes and artistic albums, you’re sure to find that you need a little bit of Elf Power.
