| Elana Stone — Kintsugi EP |
Elana Stone — Kintsugi EP
σ» Elana Stone is a vocalist, songwriter, pianist, accordion player, and band leader.
σ» “Elana Stone has an astonishing voice that is at once pure, smouldering, soulful and belting” — Chortle, Edinburgh
σ» “One of the most impressive singing voices in the country” — John Bailey, The Sunday Age
σ» ‘Kintsugi’ — a Japanese word meaning ‘golden joinery’ — is the art of fixing broken pottery with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum. As a philosophy it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise. In other words, it glorifies the cracks.
Location: Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Album release: April 17th, 2015
Record Label: Elana Stone
Duration: 30:53
Tracks:
1 Panic Attack 4:12
2 Steely Dan 3:52
3 Gravity 4:35
4 Not Mine Anymore 3:50
5 King of Kong 3:13
6 Sleep Doesn't Come 4:50
7 Emotions 6:21
σ» Recorded in Sydney by Pete Covington and produced by Jack Britten.
Members:
σ» Elana Stone // Harry Sutherland // James Hauptmann
WILLIAM SPENCER — APRIL 8, 2015
σ» Incase you haven’t heard of Elana Stone before, this gal’ is an Australian music socialite so to speak. She’s worked with Passenger, Washington, Ngaiire, Hermitude, Josh Pyke, her brother and common collaborator is Jack Stone from the former Bluejuice, and she has spent the last two years on a successful sprint with folk band All Our Exes Live in Texas.
σ» Now onto her third studio album, 2015 marks the release of the upcoming, Kintsugi: Part I. Splitting the album into two halves, Stone aims to ration her music, giving us half now and half later.
σ» Succeeding singles ‘Panic Attack’ and ‘Sleep Doesn’t Come,’ the third single off the album is ‘Steely Dan’, a throwback to early 90’s rock with a psychedelic 60’s vibe.
σ» ‘Steely Dan’ is a break up track. Yet is more self empowering then it is self deprecating. Stone describes; “It’s a break up song, but it’s defiant. It’s not heartbroken.” It’s definitely not heartbroken, this track is strong, and produced so well by Jack Britten.
σ» Although ‘kintsugi’ translates in Japanase to ‘golden joinery’ (in layman’s terms, glorifying the cracks), the production value is solid, and as much I try, I can’t hear any of those cracks the team are alluding to — but maybe that’s the point.
σ» Along with the new single, Stone has announced an upcoming tour to promote the first half of Kintsugi. Something tells me that off the back of sell out crowds around Australia with All Our Exes Live in Texas, this virago (yes, that means powerful female warrior) will put on an amazing show. :: http://speakertv.com/
Artist Biography by Jody Macgregor
σ» Elana Stone began her musical career at the young age of 14 while studying at the Newtown School of Performing Arts. As a teenager she busked in malls and played at weddings, bar mitzvahs, and book launches sponsored by her school, subsequently attending the Canberra School of Jazz where she earned a Bachelor of Music. There she met several of the musicians she would perform with in later years. She formed her own group, the Elana Stone Quartet (sometimes a quintet, depending on the lineup), and for a while fronted an 18–piece swing group called the Rhino Factory. In 2004 she won a Musicoz Award for Best Jazz Artist, and then in 2005 won a National Jazz Award at the Wangaratta Jazz Festival. That led to performing with the Cat Empire on tour and then joining Jackson Jackson's backing choir, the Jackson Jackson 5. At the same time she released her own debut album, In the Garden of Wild Things. σ» A year later she started working on a second album with her quartet, now the Elana Stone Band, but their work was disrupted by a European tour, Stone's short–lived move from Sydney to Melbourne, a breakup between two members of the band, and a marriage between two others. The initial batch of songs was scrapped and work began on a completely new album, which was eventually released in 2009 as Your Anniversary. That year she also joined her brother, Jake Stone of the band Bluejuice, to perform as a duo called the Break–Up; neither of their bands broke up, however.
Elana Stone is a name that is about to be on everyone’s lips…. again. If you haven’t already heard of her, all you have to do is look up her name and the multitude of bands and collaborations she has participated within will get you all the way to at least page three of Google search. She’s an extremely diverse musician with her foundation lying in Jazz music and her new track, Steely Dan, falling more into that trending electro–pop genre that we are all loving getting down and girly to in the club.
The ever prolific Elana Stone serves up the first tasty morsel of her new EP Kintsugi; the kickass, empowering and genre bending single Steely Dan.
σ» Just to give you some context, Stone studied at Newtown High School of the Performing Arts, going onto continue her musical studies at the much loved Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Jazz was her vibe and she was accredited with Best Jazz Artist at the Musicoz Awards back in 2004 and she has won many awards for her Jazz talents since then. By the way, how long ago does 2004 sound now? This chick has been pumping out great music for about 15 years and it seems that there is no stopping her as she continues to twist and adapt her sound.
σ» Her diversity is what makes her most loved, not only by her audience, but by fellow musicians as she has teamed up with a plethora of artists over the years such as Donny Benet, Passenger and Ngaiire. When I say she’s been in a lot of bands I’m not exaggerating — I won’t go on to list them all but her most recent band, All Our Exes Live in Texas, have been touring over the past couple of years and selling out venues all over Australia. This four piece folk band is the epitome of female empowerment; singing sad love songs in the strongest possible way possible. It’s hard to feel sorry for someone singing a sad song when their talent is completely blocking any feelings of pity you could ever feel. They are the most badass girl folk group ever.
σ» Anyway, as you can tell, Elana Stone is an extremely distracting character. You could follow so many threads and find more information and music coming from every angle and wind up where I am now, with a complete waffling mess of an EP review.
σ» Stone’s latest track titled Steely Dan has been dropped as the release of the first part of her EP Kintsugi, meaning ‘golden joinery’ in Japanese (an ancient method of fixing broken pottery with gold — bringing beauty to the imperfections). The production of Steely Dan is undeniably much cleaner than her previous work, recorded in Sydney’s Brookvale and produced by Stone’s long–time collaborator Jack Britten.
σ» With Steely Dan Stone has somehow managed to cross a psychedelic tone with the current trend of female electro–pop. I am an absolute sucker for those direct, straight–forward lyrics that seem so basic yet so hard hitting and relatable at the same time. With such a swirling, intricate guitar sound it’s almost like you crave and embrace the simplicity of the lyrics.
σ» Stone touches upon the longing for a lover that has gone but I’m not so sure that that is the point of the song. It’s almost a “You made me sad but fuck you, I’m actually OK and P.S. I’m rad at music” to whatever dumb dude let her go. Then again, it doesn’t even necessarily sound aggressive, more like a musical emotional barrier put up as a shield between herself and the heartbreak. This is not an angry song nor is it a sad song; it just comes across as that internal battle you have when you get to that point where you know everything sucks but you’re trying to convince yourself you’re okay. By the sounds of it, she is.
σ» The most interesting part within the lyrics of Steely Dan is the constant comparison Stone makes between what she has and what she doesn’t. The loss of her lover see’s her comparing her loss to her possessions; “I’ve got my car, I can drive away but I don’t have a lover to make me stay”. She is torn between the new found freedom and not actually wanting to be completely alone and independent. Yet the chorus is almost her inner strength busting through and telling the emotionally ingrained, separation–anxiety ridden part of her to let it go, something I’m pretty sure we all need to hear at at least one point in our lives.
σ» After listening to Steely Dan over and over and over again, it is such a multi–faceted track and with that winning combination of somber lyrics with an upbeat melody Stone just can’t go wrong. I am so excited to see more and more female musicians that are just so unpretentious and relatable coming out of Australia! I think it’s essential that there continues to be more of this type of music that expresses empowerment yet still acknowledges human vulnerability.
σ» Stone’s full EP Kintsugi is set to drop on April 17th and I cannot wait to see what this magical, jazzy, electro–pop independent lady has up her sleeves for us. :: http://hhhhappy.com/
Website: http://elanastone.com.au/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/elanastone
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elanastoneband?fref=ts
_____________________________________________________________
| Elana Stone — Kintsugi EP |
σ» Elana Stone is a vocalist, songwriter, pianist, accordion player, and band leader.
σ» “Elana Stone has an astonishing voice that is at once pure, smouldering, soulful and belting” — Chortle, Edinburgh
σ» “One of the most impressive singing voices in the country” — John Bailey, The Sunday Age
σ» ‘Kintsugi’ — a Japanese word meaning ‘golden joinery’ — is the art of fixing broken pottery with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum. As a philosophy it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise. In other words, it glorifies the cracks.
Location: Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Album release: April 17th, 2015
Record Label: Elana Stone
Duration: 30:53
Tracks:
1 Panic Attack 4:12
2 Steely Dan 3:52
3 Gravity 4:35
4 Not Mine Anymore 3:50
5 King of Kong 3:13
6 Sleep Doesn't Come 4:50
7 Emotions 6:21
σ» Recorded in Sydney by Pete Covington and produced by Jack Britten.
Members:
σ» Elana Stone // Harry Sutherland // James Hauptmann
WILLIAM SPENCER — APRIL 8, 2015
σ» Incase you haven’t heard of Elana Stone before, this gal’ is an Australian music socialite so to speak. She’s worked with Passenger, Washington, Ngaiire, Hermitude, Josh Pyke, her brother and common collaborator is Jack Stone from the former Bluejuice, and she has spent the last two years on a successful sprint with folk band All Our Exes Live in Texas.
σ» Now onto her third studio album, 2015 marks the release of the upcoming, Kintsugi: Part I. Splitting the album into two halves, Stone aims to ration her music, giving us half now and half later.
σ» Succeeding singles ‘Panic Attack’ and ‘Sleep Doesn’t Come,’ the third single off the album is ‘Steely Dan’, a throwback to early 90’s rock with a psychedelic 60’s vibe.
σ» ‘Steely Dan’ is a break up track. Yet is more self empowering then it is self deprecating. Stone describes; “It’s a break up song, but it’s defiant. It’s not heartbroken.” It’s definitely not heartbroken, this track is strong, and produced so well by Jack Britten.
σ» Although ‘kintsugi’ translates in Japanase to ‘golden joinery’ (in layman’s terms, glorifying the cracks), the production value is solid, and as much I try, I can’t hear any of those cracks the team are alluding to — but maybe that’s the point.
σ» Along with the new single, Stone has announced an upcoming tour to promote the first half of Kintsugi. Something tells me that off the back of sell out crowds around Australia with All Our Exes Live in Texas, this virago (yes, that means powerful female warrior) will put on an amazing show. :: http://speakertv.com/
Artist Biography by Jody Macgregor
σ» Elana Stone began her musical career at the young age of 14 while studying at the Newtown School of Performing Arts. As a teenager she busked in malls and played at weddings, bar mitzvahs, and book launches sponsored by her school, subsequently attending the Canberra School of Jazz where she earned a Bachelor of Music. There she met several of the musicians she would perform with in later years. She formed her own group, the Elana Stone Quartet (sometimes a quintet, depending on the lineup), and for a while fronted an 18–piece swing group called the Rhino Factory. In 2004 she won a Musicoz Award for Best Jazz Artist, and then in 2005 won a National Jazz Award at the Wangaratta Jazz Festival. That led to performing with the Cat Empire on tour and then joining Jackson Jackson's backing choir, the Jackson Jackson 5. At the same time she released her own debut album, In the Garden of Wild Things. σ» A year later she started working on a second album with her quartet, now the Elana Stone Band, but their work was disrupted by a European tour, Stone's short–lived move from Sydney to Melbourne, a breakup between two members of the band, and a marriage between two others. The initial batch of songs was scrapped and work began on a completely new album, which was eventually released in 2009 as Your Anniversary. That year she also joined her brother, Jake Stone of the band Bluejuice, to perform as a duo called the Break–Up; neither of their bands broke up, however.
Elana Stone is a name that is about to be on everyone’s lips…. again. If you haven’t already heard of her, all you have to do is look up her name and the multitude of bands and collaborations she has participated within will get you all the way to at least page three of Google search. She’s an extremely diverse musician with her foundation lying in Jazz music and her new track, Steely Dan, falling more into that trending electro–pop genre that we are all loving getting down and girly to in the club.
The ever prolific Elana Stone serves up the first tasty morsel of her new EP Kintsugi; the kickass, empowering and genre bending single Steely Dan.
σ» Just to give you some context, Stone studied at Newtown High School of the Performing Arts, going onto continue her musical studies at the much loved Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Jazz was her vibe and she was accredited with Best Jazz Artist at the Musicoz Awards back in 2004 and she has won many awards for her Jazz talents since then. By the way, how long ago does 2004 sound now? This chick has been pumping out great music for about 15 years and it seems that there is no stopping her as she continues to twist and adapt her sound.
σ» Her diversity is what makes her most loved, not only by her audience, but by fellow musicians as she has teamed up with a plethora of artists over the years such as Donny Benet, Passenger and Ngaiire. When I say she’s been in a lot of bands I’m not exaggerating — I won’t go on to list them all but her most recent band, All Our Exes Live in Texas, have been touring over the past couple of years and selling out venues all over Australia. This four piece folk band is the epitome of female empowerment; singing sad love songs in the strongest possible way possible. It’s hard to feel sorry for someone singing a sad song when their talent is completely blocking any feelings of pity you could ever feel. They are the most badass girl folk group ever.
σ» Anyway, as you can tell, Elana Stone is an extremely distracting character. You could follow so many threads and find more information and music coming from every angle and wind up where I am now, with a complete waffling mess of an EP review.
σ» Stone’s latest track titled Steely Dan has been dropped as the release of the first part of her EP Kintsugi, meaning ‘golden joinery’ in Japanese (an ancient method of fixing broken pottery with gold — bringing beauty to the imperfections). The production of Steely Dan is undeniably much cleaner than her previous work, recorded in Sydney’s Brookvale and produced by Stone’s long–time collaborator Jack Britten.
σ» With Steely Dan Stone has somehow managed to cross a psychedelic tone with the current trend of female electro–pop. I am an absolute sucker for those direct, straight–forward lyrics that seem so basic yet so hard hitting and relatable at the same time. With such a swirling, intricate guitar sound it’s almost like you crave and embrace the simplicity of the lyrics.
σ» Stone touches upon the longing for a lover that has gone but I’m not so sure that that is the point of the song. It’s almost a “You made me sad but fuck you, I’m actually OK and P.S. I’m rad at music” to whatever dumb dude let her go. Then again, it doesn’t even necessarily sound aggressive, more like a musical emotional barrier put up as a shield between herself and the heartbreak. This is not an angry song nor is it a sad song; it just comes across as that internal battle you have when you get to that point where you know everything sucks but you’re trying to convince yourself you’re okay. By the sounds of it, she is.
σ» The most interesting part within the lyrics of Steely Dan is the constant comparison Stone makes between what she has and what she doesn’t. The loss of her lover see’s her comparing her loss to her possessions; “I’ve got my car, I can drive away but I don’t have a lover to make me stay”. She is torn between the new found freedom and not actually wanting to be completely alone and independent. Yet the chorus is almost her inner strength busting through and telling the emotionally ingrained, separation–anxiety ridden part of her to let it go, something I’m pretty sure we all need to hear at at least one point in our lives.
σ» After listening to Steely Dan over and over and over again, it is such a multi–faceted track and with that winning combination of somber lyrics with an upbeat melody Stone just can’t go wrong. I am so excited to see more and more female musicians that are just so unpretentious and relatable coming out of Australia! I think it’s essential that there continues to be more of this type of music that expresses empowerment yet still acknowledges human vulnerability.
σ» Stone’s full EP Kintsugi is set to drop on April 17th and I cannot wait to see what this magical, jazzy, electro–pop independent lady has up her sleeves for us. :: http://hhhhappy.com/
Website: http://elanastone.com.au/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/elanastone
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elanastoneband?fref=ts
_____________________________________________________________