Hey Elbow consists of Julia Ringdahl (vocals and guitar), Ellen Petersson (horns and electronics), and drummer Liam Amner. With a background in jazz and an ear for distortion they create weird pop music with a big sound. The trio is signed with Adrian Recordings, the Malmö, Sweden based record label also home to Alice Boman and Boeoes Kaelstigen.
“Martin” starts off with massive thunderous drums, around which an angular building of synths, edgy guitars, hiss and percussion gradually rises. The beautiful and minimalistic singing repeats one line eight times, and small effective variations in the melody lets the listener know that no more words are needed. The rest of the singing is wordless, and the cacophony calls it a day the second its mission is done.
