I almost slept on this one, but I’m so bloody glad I didn’t. Because this is a hit of sunshine that presses every single one of my buttons.
Something of a comeback from the brink, Early In The Morning is a song that captures the chaotic feeling of a life in free fall. Last year ELEL frontman Ben Elkins went through a divorce with the person that had been the band’s namesake and in the wake of that split half the band walked away, as did the band’s label.
Following on from Be Yeah earlier this year, this is the sound of a band re-tooled and ready for something new. Working together with two founding members Tim Cook and Zach Tichenor, Ben Elkins has clearly found a route forwards.
Early In The Morning reminds me of Pheonix mixed with a little Passion Pit (hat tip here - it was a friend that pointed out the latter resemblance). It has that kind of dizzy, infectious energy. Elkins’ vocal breaks through waves of electronic energy and stuttering percussion as his sings his of his longing to just being closer to someone he loves. “Never see you in early in the morning” he calls with desire on the record’s chorus. It is hard not to know exactly how he feels, and that huge hook that carries the chorus in is exactly why I knew there was no way I couldn’t write about this beautiful song.
Sometimes life demands that you stop playing things safe. You should fight to see that person early in the morning. If we only get one spin on this planet then we had better ensure we play for keeps and make it count.
Describing the song, Elkins says:
“When everything falls apart, you stop being careful with your art. You get messy and go out of bounds. I wanted to see what we could make if we took away the rules. It became really exciting, I had to keep going.”
Tear up your rules. Go out of bounds. Time to go all in. But first, play this record loud.