Live Review: Elephant Stone - Daltons, Brighton 26/04/2024
Elephant Stone dazzle Brighton crowd in electrifying set on the seafront.
Canadian psych-rock fourtet Elephant Stone has been at the forefront of the scene for over 15 years now, releasing arguably some of the most innovative and exciting blend of psychedelic, pop, and eastern music.
Having just released their sixth full-length studio album, their first since 2020, they show no sign of slowing down their sonic explorations as Back Into The Dream reveals some of their most energetic and mind-bending work to date.
Opening act from London Karma Sheen blew the crowd away with their mix of psychedelic/krautrock with eastern influences, creating superbly innovative sounds performed through a vast range of instruments including the theremin, sitar, flute and harmonium.
As Elephant Stone started to set up, an overwhelming sense of anticipation grew over the crowd as they encircled the compact stage at Daltons, a new Brighton venue with one of the most luscious views in the city.
The set started as frontman Rishi Dhir sat with his sitar, enchanting the crowd with a minute long dive into the ringing tones of the extensive, magical string instrument. Minutes later, the lush, reversing ambient guitar tones slowly led into the group belting out “Heavy Moon”, the second song off their critically acclaimed 2013 self-titled record.
This was immediately followed up with four songs from their latest record, the undulating guitar textures from “Lost in a Dream” sending the front rows into a frenzy, backed by the melodic famous sounds of the Mellotron throughout their newest endeavours.
The end of the set was highlighted by the incredible sitar jam on “Don't You Know”, as the band sweated their way through the 7-minute constantly evolving psych jam before breaking down into a cover of “Norwegian Wood” by The Beatles.
A magnificent spectacle of top-tier musicians at the height of their creative abilities, Elephant Stone keep proving their weight in gold with their innovative ruminations. The group now look forward to a lengthy European tour throughout May as they celebrate their first release in four years.
Words by Jay Cohen
