ELDER ISLAND AT ELSEWHERE IN BROOKLYN

Photo Credit: Matt Joy Photo

British electro-pop group Elder Island rolled into Elsewhere in Brooklyn on May 13. This was their first show in New York City since October of 2019. Elder Island is composed of Katy Sargent, Luke Thornton, and David Havard. 

The show was sold out and the crowd was ready for a good time. Jordann opened the show, telling the crowd he was from Canada and was very excited to be back playing shows. His voice was smooth and yet captivating, and sort of reminded me of the John Mayer type croon. He played a few new songs including one called “effective communication” that Jordann said he recently shot a music video for. The song opens with, “Step one, start with the facts. Be objective and avoid confrontation.” The song was good advice and groovy. After a couple more songs and getting the crowd feeling good, it was almost time for Elder Island to go on. Jordann’s last song was titled, “Funk Olympics”. 

Then, it was time for Elder Island to go on. The band opened with the opening track from their 2021 effort, Swimming Static. The song started with vocalist Katy on an electric cello which was a fun way to open. Once the song’s background was established, Sargent’s voice took over the room with some of the crowd singing along immediately. They played a lot of their latest record, throughout the set showing off how well the new songs translated to a crowded club. In between songs the band made sure to thank the crowd for being there and how they were “very excited to be here finally”. 

The competing elements of shimmering pop and the electronic sensibilities perfectly fit together through this three piece and through Katy Sargent’s voice. The next song on the setlist was also off of the 2021 record, entitled “feral”. Even those like me who didn’t know a lot of words to songs could not help but feel the beat and vibe. Throughout the set, David Harvard was alternating between playing keys and guitar and Luke Thorton was playing keys and bass. The band ripped through songs with minimal talking in between except to thank the crowd for being there, and how cool it was to be in a crowded room again after lockdown and the last two years. 

The electronic cello/string instrument came out again during the middle of the set, and that was one of the coolest things because you don’t often see an electronic band play an instrument like that. The show was absolutely a lot of fun and I highly recommend seeing Elder Island if they play near you.