Elephant Gun
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Elephant Gun

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"Innerview Magazine"

"Send beer, smokes, hot wings, Doritos, coffee cups, and garbage bags," Elephant Gun begs their fans via MySpace to assist them in the recording of their newest album. The Elgin rockers are hungry…and apparently messy. If a junk food diet is to blame for the success of the band's follow up to 2007’s KP, expect stepped-up intensity to their sound flavored by horns, strings, and traditional rock implements. While it's hard to throw a label around their sound (one reviewer ventured a brawl between The Minutemen and The Polyphonic Spree), take a moment to envision such an altercation if you will. Elephant Gun, like the Wu-Tang Clan of rock, has more members (including its Indian Spirit Guide members) than what can easily be accounted for and their live performance is usually off the charts, say those lucky enough to have taken in the spectacle. Their newest yet still unnamed release is slated to drop early this summer. (Appearing at Morseland on May 8) --text: Jyn Radakovits--photo: Kelly Walter
- Jyn Radakovits


"A Tutorial in Gypsy Rock"

Elephant Gun – A Tutorial on Gypsy Rock
September 21, 2009 by jesy
Filed under Articles, Scene Out Loud
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When Google-ing “Elephant Gun” to find out when and where I was going to see this band last Saturday, I was surprised and confused when pictures of guns popped up next images of dead elephants. This was not exactly what I had in mind when I heard about the “gypsy rock” band I was scheduled to go see on Chicago’s Southside. Arriving at Reggie’s Music Joint on south LaSalle and finding a half block taken over by serious heavy metal kids didn’t clear things up.

(Thankfully?) Elephant Gun was playing at the venue next door with a smaller, but notably less terrifying looking crowd. The opening band and their cereal box playing was just wrapping up as I get inside, anxious to learn what exactly “gypsy rock” was.

Any misunderstanding about the genre was quickly resolved with a reasonably obvious mix of driving guitars and bass combined with a fiddle, and sometimes a harpsichord. Oh, and there were a couple of trumpets and two dudes on keyboard. I saw a harmonica for a few songs. Drums, obviously. And tambourines. Lots and lot of tambourines.



In addition to a small music shop, Elephant Gun had to squeeze all 8 members on the low stage at Reggie’s. Logistically impressive, the band worked this small area with energy and an obvious love for their music. It was refreshing to hear music that was legitimately new and unique. At least it was new for this girl; the small fanbase was clearly well versed in Elephant Gun’s set list and looked pretty stocked, singing and dancing along.



Among the multiple instruments and folksy vibe in each number, the rock-out feel was not forgotten. Singers Jared Olsen and Jim Drake provided the screaming vocals and intense performance of a less baubles, bangles and beads band. The mix of standard rock temperament with the ever changing instrument line up and gypsy infusion was an unexpected treat from a new band from whom I’m curious to hear more.

The final song of the set was pure rock, ending with Olsen beating a single maraca on a tambourine and inciting a small mosh pit. There couldn’t have been a more perfect ending.


- Planet Verge


"All Night, Early Morning"

All Night, Early Morning
Posted by eliotg in New Music Reviews on 12 11th, 2008 | no responses

Elephant Gun Album
Okay, okay so this isn’t exactly a “new” release, but it’s new to me. Local band Elephant Gun released their first album “KP” and dropped it on the Chicagoland area sometime early this past Spring. Being recently introduced, I’m entralled with the amount of noise these guys can make. At their last show in Chicago, at the Morseland (which is unfortunately 21+ only) I finally got to meet the guys whose CD I can’t stop putting on repeat.

Their live show was brandished with an 8 piece band and an excrutiangly full stage. Marimba, drums, three acoustic guitars, one slide guitar, keyboards, trumpet, violin, bass, tuba and a whole lot of vocals. This group can make more noise than most high school marching bands- but not in a bad way.

Although I’ve only recently discovered “KP” the band plans on starting the recording process again in January to record their second full length. With most of the songs already written and being performed at their live shows, the band is exuberant about the impending recording process. They plan on recording in the Northwest suburbs, near where they all live and practice.

“I love playing shows, but it’s nice to take the time off and just be able to work through the songs and get them right,” says Jared Olson, the lead singer and songwriter for the band. When I asked him why in Chicago they didn’t play more all ages shows, Olson responded eagerly.

“There aren’t enough all ages venues in the city. Right now, we’re really only getting booked at bars and clubs. We are in the process of looking for places where we can play all ages,” Olson admitted. “We are playing an all ages music fest in Elgin!”

Ian’s Party is what he’s talking about, a punk rock fest in Elgin starting early January. Parts of Ian’s Party will be all ages and will be 21+ after curfew around 10 or 11 Olson explained.

Even though this band isn’t playing all ages shows in the Chicago quite yet, they are rockin’ the suburbs and you should definitely check out their release “KP” from their Myspace: www.myspace.com/elephantgunchicago/ or check out the first track, “Renegade”, on our homepage.

Tell me what you think.

- Go! Chicago


"KEXP Seattle"

"Yep, as is usually the case in Chicago, October's Equalizer fell on a pretty busy night. Between the Cubs playoff game and the season premier of Joe Rogan's Fear Factor — Oops! I mean the VP debates (sorry, I get confused with all the barfing) it looked like Equalizer had the makings of a perfect storm of a suckey night in indie-town. But nay, my friends, t'was not so! As doors opened at darkroom, its murky gloom was off-set by the flicker of a giant projection screen centered over the stage displaying the arguments of two inert talking balloon animals who may one day over-see special task forces for low priority government agencies which do things that no one knows or cares about. Yet, like a hipster magnet the large sparkling surface drew them threw the door one by one and two by two and ever closer the evening's destiny of rock!

But no sooner had the giant screen snapped back up inside its hanging receptacle and the stage lights flashed on then Elephant Gun leapt into action with all 100 of their members (or so it seemed) and shook the stillness loudly to pieces. With an instant cacophony of horns, strings, and gadgety percussion devices along side traditional rock instruments — guitars, drums bass, keys, Elephant Gun played a frenzied 35 minute set that smacked any of the residual bad taste from the debate right out of everyone's mouth and reminded us all what we came here to do.

A collection of musicians from Elgin, IL, and Chicago, Elephant Gun sound like what I might imagine to hear in a bar brawl between the Minute Men, the Polyphonic Spree and John Philip Sousa. I happen to be a fan of all three of those artists so that is a complement. Anyone familiar with their new album "KP" which they recently self released might be a little shocked to see how much they step up the intensity level in their live performance but in my experience that is almost always preferable to the other way around."

http://blog.kexp.org/blog/2008/10/09/equalizer-chicago-102-recap-takka-takka-grammar-and-elephant-gun/

- KEXP SEATTLE


Discography

"Tyrannosaurus Red" CDEP (spring 2007, self-released)
"KP" CDLP (6/18/2008 CASSETTE DECK)
"Beartime Stories" CDLP (Summer 2009!)

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Bio

Elephant Gun originates from Illinois, playing an aggressive blend of ball-room and gypsy folk rock with a healthy amount of country thrown in. They are a band of 7 to 8 (sometimes more!, sometimes less!) friends who share a passion for authentic instrumentation (no pedals here!) and a punk/diy ethic. They have been a band for 2 years now, playing shows with exciting local bands (The Brokedowns, Sass Dragons, BUST!, Heart Shaped Hate, OHTIS and on and on…) Elephant Gun is on the indie local label CASSETTE DECK and put out their first record “KP” last June. They are set to release their second full length record "Beartime Stories" on CASSETTE DECK this summer.

Check out the band's other website at http://www.myspace.com/elephantgunchicago