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LE SUPERHOMARD continue taking songs off their marvelous and one of a kind “Meadow Lane Park”. Now it is time for the Digital Single for “SDVB”, which is otherwise known as “Sweet Dark Velvet Blues”, a song that shows off so many of the qualities that make LE SUPERHOMARD such a special group so full of personality, relating them somehow to groups like STEREOLAB and BROADCAST. Yes, because the analogical drones are here, the roboticized melodies with echoes of KRAFTWERK and FAUST, the dreamy voices making the oneiric feeling even stronger… And there is new proof of their creativity in a video that gives us an absolutely incredible trip through time, mixing cinematographic techniques, collage and animation, stop-motion and 3D. Because what Pooley (Woom Studio) is doing with these videos for the French group deserves a separate mention. Or even better, a course in the school of cinematographic animation.

To complete this release, we are recovering two instrumental tracks from an old, out-of-print EP, “The Pomegranate Tree EP”. Two new gestures of sonorous fantasy. “The Pomegranate Tree” itself transports us to colorful, elegant, romantic countrysides, just over a minute and a half, while “September 9” goes for lyricism, strings, melancholy. All of this within the framework of their unique auditory experience, full of textures, synthesizers and impossible melodies.

It is hard to find artis [ Read more ]

Until now, synth-pop and electro-pop have been most frequently characterized by the description of a dystopian world full of machines, starting with the style’s precursors, KRAFTWERK. But that future, one way or the other, is already here. That is why Elena Comas (bass and vocals; also in NELEONARD) and Anna Fredriksson (synths, rhythms, vocals and vocoder, also in LOS GANGLIOS), who are otherwise known as DIE KATAPULT, have decided to bear witness and write the first full length, “DKXD”. It is a digital, mechanized world, entrenched in an inconsistent and disconcerting idiosyncrasy, which they have used with an extremely intelligent mix of surrealism, dadaism, humor and cheekiness.

To the beat of Google Translator, they propose a sonic journey around Europe in every sense possible: linguistically (they sing in German, French, English, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, and even Japanese), musically (the influences coming through belong to all the pop traditions of the old continent: LIO, DAFT PUNK, the already mentioned KRAFTWERK, AVIADOR DRO, TELEX, LADYTRON, Franco Battiato…). To achieve all of this, they have had the help of none other than Ian Catt (SAINT ETIENNE, TREMBLING BLUE STARS, THE FIELD MICE, SHAMPOO, THE SCHOOL…) on production. And the result couldn’t be more fun and exciting. And of course, it is also tremendously danceable.

But don’t think there is some kind of overarching concept here or anything like that, with the overwh [ Read more ]

A few months ago, we were able to enjoy the Digital Single, “Contigo” from the electronic duo NOS MIRAN, and now “No Existo” is here, preparing us for the imminent arrival of their first full-length, “Todo Se Repite”. The song starts with the line that gave the album its title, on which Sergio Rodríguez and Marta Quintana are back with more proof of so many of their qualities that make what they have to offer so exciting.

Electronic pop with an eye toward the dance floor, with great choruses and disturbing lyrics, that talk about existential questions, anguish about living, achieving a strange dialogue between serious and carefree, as if they were aware of all of the suffering but also of how important it is to hold onto hope. “Todo Se Repite… Pero no existo” (Everything repeats itself… But I don’t exist). This line runs around in circles in your head endlessly.

This advance Digital Single also comes with a video by, once again, Antonio Máiquez, who is now a frequent collaborator with NOS MIRAN, and who, as always, invents a special and unique universe in the videos for the group’s songs.

The countdown begins. What we are sure is going to be one of the biggest surprises of the year is about to be revealed. And we can guarantee it’s going to be amazing. They do exist and we are well aware of it.

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We are still savoring the sweetness of that marvelous album by THE LAST DETAIL, and we are here with a big surprise: after fifteen years, there is a new album by A GIRL CALLED EDDY. It’s called “Been Around”, it’s coming out on Elefant Records and we are immensely happy.

Because these fifteen years, despite the silence in terms of recording and releasing, have been years of dedication in which, both in the form of collaborations (Ron Sexsmith, SUPER FURRY ANIMALS) and admirations (Jarvis Cocker, Gilbert O’Sullivan, Nina Persson, Jane Birkin, Robert Smith, Tracey Thorn and even Burt Bacharach himself), the figure of Erin Moran has been considerably strengthened on behalf of a large part of the recording industry. And this album gives meaning to such a long period of time. And the song being released as an advance single, which is also the title track, and which we are releasing today, explains everything clearly: a life process of preparation, discovery, life and death, falling out of love, which have led her to the album she wanted to make. It is beyond perfect, and smells like an instant classic, leaving behind the shadows to enjoy the light-flooded chiaroscuros.

And let this badge serve as proof. “Been Around”, the song, is bare, velvety rhythm’n’blues, it is lifted with the introduction of the wind instruments and the push of the harmonica. It is Laura Nyro, it is Burt Bacharach, it is Van Morrison. And the video that g [ Read more ]

We are closing the cycle for the latest album by ALPACA SPORTS, “From Paris With Love”, with a Digital Single for “Saddest Girl In The World”. This song is 100% trademark them, with brilliant guitars; fresh, addictive melodies, and lyrics full of melancholy. What’s more, it is accompanied by “Letters”, a previously unreleased song that is a delicate and fragile mid-tempo acoustic.

And further, we are also going to present the video for the album’s title track. For this song, they used an old Super 8 camera and colorful eighties-esque backgrounds, with simultaneous or superimposed images and takes. This video reminds us of scenes and videos from Tiffany or Molly Ringwald. It is so charming.

And with this, we have closure on an album that has been a dream come true for Elefant Records: to be able to release a full-length album from the group fronted by Andreas Jonsson. But the songs will continue to play in our stereos while we wait for new songs from the Swedish band.

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Yeah, this is big news. Soleá Morente is releasing her new album with Elefant Records. To say that we are happy is not nearly enough. She is the daughter of the legendary flamenco singer Enrique Morente (autor of “Omega” and “Pablo De Málaga”, among others) and the flamenco dancer Aurora Carbonell. She is the sister of Estrella and José Enrique Morente. And above all, she is responsible for that EP, a tribute to her father, with LOS EVANGELISTAS (where Antonio Arias and almost the whole of LOS PLANETAS were members), and of those two magnificent albums, “Tendrá Que Haber Un Camino” and “Ole Lorelei”. And the next one, right here. This coming January, “Lo Que Te Falta” will be here, and we are happy to announce that it will once again be supported by the regular group of collaborators like J(LOS PLANETAS),David Rodríguez (LA ESTRELLA DE DAVID) and LA BIEN QUERIDA.

It is our privilege to be able to take part in the career of someone we consider to be such a vital artist for the evolution of music in our country. Because Soleá was born at a crossroads of sounds, and her career looks like a running debate between trends, roots, impulses, DNA, rock, flamenco… Her struggle to find an identity on totally new terrain. She is creating it she goes. She doesn’t need fusion, she doesn’t need to mix anything. She is the essence of that fusion, and the research behind he [ Read more ]

We continue to pull hits from an album that is packed full of them, and the thing is, the collaboration between Joe Moore (THE PERFECT KISS, THE YEARNING) and Cristina Quesada has turned out to be a practically infallible hit factory. And since we can expect nothing less, the title track for the album, “Think I Heard A Rumour” is further proof. Impeccable euro-disco with luminous choruses that overflow with youthfulness, energy and decisiveness. This song is very well accompanied on this Digital Single by two surprising elements. The first, a video by Daniel Cuenca – an authentic exercise in interior design, somewhere between kitsch and dreaminess, between sophisticated lights and the impossible colors of neon at night. This is a tremendously visual work, full of mirror play, symmetries and effects. The second surprise is a version, produced by Joe himself, of THE BANGLES’ “Manic Monday”. A more danceable version, but that maintains that eighties spirit that made this hit the anthem of a generation for so many lovers of that fantastic decade.

Further proof of one of those composter/performer tandems marked by the magic of the amazing discoveries that come out of such a relationship. They are not rumours. It is a danceable reality.

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We’re not telling you anything new when we say that Teresa Iturrioz and Ibon Errazkin move the hearts that come into contact with the compass of their music. Nor is it news that they believe in the Single format; their stage name is even SINGLE.

That’s why we have to celebrate their return, after four years of silence, as a duo (Ibon Errazkin released his solo album, “Foto Aérea” in 2018; SINGLE haven’t released anything since the Maxi-Single “Rea Del Ritmo” in 2015). If they submerged themselves in the most sinuous dance rhythms on their last release, with that Jamaican inspiration that looked so good on them, this time they are recovering their most personal essence.

“El Roce” could have perfectly been a Single from LE MANS, their last project together, but it’s not. Over the years, Iturrioz and Errazkin have figured out how to continue stripping down their music of any complacent decoration, and their poetic vein has become more and more intense.

Their new Single, a delicate bareness that defies any clichés, is the perfect example of the level of mastery they have reached. And this being with two thinking heads includes on the B side a third person, inseparable from them, and now more present than ever.

Because on the alternative version that they have called “Un Roce Al Paso” they have an incredible guest artist, Javier Aramburu (FAMILY), who is responsible for all the album covers, each [ Read more ]

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After have made that trilogy that was “Premeditación, Nocturnidad Y Alevosía”, and her last album, “Fuego”, it should not come as a surprise that the sixth album of Ana Fernández-Villaverde‘s career is called “Brujería”. But the game of mirrors is radical. Because, “Brujería” is probably the most open and direct about emotions, where the songs touch tangentially on the mystery to dive in more deeply lyrically and epically. It is an album about love, brutal and raw, without metaphors, as is her style. Darkness and light, and each song leads unequivocally into the next.

“Love and falling in love with something or someone is full of witchcraft. When we fall in love we feel like we are under a spell cast by the object of our affection. The effect is similar to a highly addictive drug; it creates strong ties in our mind between pleasure and the thing we desire” Ana says. Titles like “La Verdad”, “¿Quécategoría”, “Te Quiero”, “La Fuerza” and “Miedo” make a point of this direct and impressive concept, which is challenging at times.

This is an album where mid and slow tempos abound, songs that turn into instant classics like only Ana knows how to do. After “Hechizo Protector” which leads us into the first track, the wall of sound of the highly cinematographic “La Verdad” makes a chill ru [ Read more ]

“Me Envenenas” is a special song in LA BIEN QUERIDA’s discography: it’s a tour de force, a brief crescendo, full of anguish, agonizing and sickly. It is a fundamental piece within the album “Brujería”, the sixth album in Ana Fernández-Villaverde’scareer. That is exactly why it needs to have a special release. And, the thing is, the video that goes with this Single is directed by none other than the multiple-award-winning film director Carlos Vermut, who is the author of movies like “Diamond Flash” and “Magical Girl”, which already form a part of the history of film. The video has left us speechless, distraught, excited… But no one can explain it better than the director himself:

“The music video for the song “Me Envenenas” comes from an idea that I began to think about a few years ago. It was the idea that a Japanese woman, an office worker, tired of having to hold back and perform the role assigned to her by her job and by society, decided to dress up as a ghost at night and scare people, and get some release that way.

The idea (which still interests me now) had to be pushed aside because of other projects I was working on, and sometimes I fantasized about the possibility of being able to do something with it somehow.

When I talked to Ana about the video for “Me Envenenas”, we were very clear that we wanted it to tell a story. It was important that it had [ Read more ]

It has been almost a year since an absolutely marvelous collaboration hit the streets. Erin Moran (A GIRL CALLED EDDY) and Mehdi Zannad (FUGU) created “The Last Detail”, a fascinating and seductive album. Harvey Williams (ANOTHER SUNNY DAY, BLUEBOY, THE FIELD MICE, TREMBLING BLUE STARS)himself decided to take the pleasure of starting off the press kit. In that text, he included the line: “And even if it always seems hard to highlight one thing over the rest, in this case I’ll stick with “Places” as something particularly huge. Lyrically, it’s a fond memory of days past, poured into a dazzling and happy melody with countless hooks; you think you’re listening to the chorus, and then the song moves on to the real chorus. And then it plays the same trick again. Magnificent”.

That wonder called “Places”, an authentic paragon of love for Burt Bacharach and THE BEACH BOYS, with that halo of THE CARPENTERS that Moran impresses on (almost) everything she touches in the last few years, is the title track of this four-song Single. The 7” Single, transparent vinyl, in a 300-copy limited edition, includes two previously unreleased tracks.Side A closes with “Killing Time”, proof of the magic that this alliance has made: harmonic and instrumental elegance, classicism in the melodies and arrangements, overflowing with good taste and elegance. There are so many virtues that the references are endless: THE VELV [ Read more ]

DIE KATAPULT is the Spanish-Swedish fusion of Elena Comas (bass guitar and voice) and Anna Fredriksson (synths, rhythms, voice and vocoder). Four years have passed since we released their debut Mini-LP "Kristall Reinheit” in our collection "New Adventures In Pop" (in delicious white colour vinyl). In the years since Anna and Elena have been preparing with great care and attention-to-detail the songs that will make up their new work. The songs have been cooked over a low heat and in their preparation they've had a luxury producer, Ian Catt (SAINT ETIENNE, THE FIELD MICE, SHAMPOO, THE SCHOOL, ALPACA SPORTS…) with whom the band have formed an exceptional partnership for what will be their imminent debut LP "DKXD" and from which we now present the first Single: "Bäckerei Digital" ("Digital Bakery") an immediate hit that is in some ways reminiscent of Italo disco.

By the end of 2019 you’d be forgiven for thinking we were living in a dystopian world full of machines that automate the process of making items that were formerly handmade. You can even find baguette vending machines in French villages. But DIE KATAPULT have created a digital bakery where they are the ones dominating “The Machine”. Restless and backlit pastry chefs who give free reign to creativity and provide their party guests with delectablepieces of cake. Those who take a bite will soon find themselves floating and dancing.

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If we tell you that LA BIEN QUERIDA’s new album is called “Brujería” you won’t be surprised, after that trilogy called “Premeditación, Nocturnidad Y Alevosía”. But don’t be fooled – what is coming is a change in direction. Tear up your bets and free yourselves of all your expectations. We’re going to give you some slippery proof with “¿Quécategoría”

Produced by Carlos René (AXOLOTES MEXICANOS) and with the collaboration of Diego Ibáñez (CAROLINA DURANTE), the advance single for the sixth album from Ana Fernández-Villaverde talks really directly about the state of isolation that comes with being in love (the most powerful witchcraft of allcategoría), and the beginning of the song is a clear tribute to two of her most significant references – THE CURE and NEW ORDER. With a chorus that is destined to be sung over and over, and a euphoric energy that is perfectly reflected in the video directed by Diego Jiménez (LA CASA AZUL, CARIÑO, NEVVER, AXOLOTES MEXICANOS, CAROLINA DURANTE), and in which, by the way, Ana plays a psychic. “¿Quécategoría” could be the central theme the whole new album by LA BIEN QUERIDA is based on and developed around. It’s a concept that has been illustrated by Mario Rivière, who has created an illustration for each song and each spell; in this c [ Read more ]

LINDA GUILALA continue to expand their discography at surprisingly large strides. Their collection of Singles is already quite considerable. We were recently talking about an exclusive Single for the English label Sonic Cathedral, with the subsequent tour on British soil. Now it’s Germany, specifically the label Dreams Never End (a tribute to the NEW ORDER song), specialized in shoegaze and with only three Singles under its belt so far, that will release the physical version – a limited-edition, yellow-vinyl – of the new Single by Eva, Iván and Mari. Here at Elefant, we will release the digital version of these songs for the rest of the world, so that nobody is left without the possibility of hearing these two hits.

“Agosto” has two previously unreleased tracks. The title-track seems to have wanted to join in on the tribute the label’s name makes, and with that LINDA GUILALA pull out the digital synthesizers, the drum kits and the military tempo for a dark, sad song that turns the typical summer story of unforgettable romance upside down. The B side, “Salga Bien” plays with the same elements but this time stays within the group’s more customary parameters: melancholic ambiance, deep reverb, ferocious guitars building huge walls, hand in hand with keyboards. This release will also come with a few tour dates in Germany, France and Spain.

It is clear that this group based in Galicia is comfortable with t [ Read more ]