Ok, first things first. It rhymes with Fairy. Hailing from Wales, Eleri will no doubt have
had to explain that a few times, and she includes it in press releases – which was
incredibly helpful when we introduced her on stage at Buckle and Boots this
year – just one of many festival appearances she has made recently. We got the chance to simply sit and listen
(and share a drink) when she appeared on the line up of the super “festival in a
day” Country In The Afternoon in Putney’s Half Moon. It was at that meeting that Eleri told us she
had an album coming out, and we have been excited to hear it, so we were
thrilled when it arrived in our inbox.
Of her new album The
Carnival, Eleri says
I always want to push myself
to be better and on this album I’ve amped up the energy on my country sound
infused with rock and pop and made a few fun country party tunes that wouldn’t
be out of place at a Rodeo
So, lets go to The Carnival…
The album opens with Magic
– but it’s a live version! Hearing Eleri address the crowd and announce the
song almost had me cheering the stage! Bouncy, uptempo – and excellent percussion
keeps the track moving and the listener clapping along. This is very much our welcome to The
Carnival, an invitation to enter the tent and behold the wonders within! Heels to Hell keeps the up tempo feel,
with a great rhythm and Eleri’s vocal being slightly darker than in the rest of
her songs. The whole album is a
wonderful mix of stories and styles, with almost every track introduced with
its own instrumental style, the link in every case being Eleri’s vocal. Heads I’m Yours (Tails Your Mine)
slows the mood, while Good For A Girl has an almost ethereal opening and
uses background effects that show Eleri is willing to experiment and push
boundaries with her sound. Blue Skies
a Comin’ is a very slow track, allowing us to really hear the purity of
Eleri’s voice, as a song it tells us of looking to a better future.
Burn the Candle Down is
a softer, more gentle track – a couple trying to recover from a fight at night,
with the vocals, instrumental and pacing all creating the feel of a late night
chat. It’s a duet and it is actually
quite beautiful! Leon Stanford’s voice blends
so well with Eleri’s giving the song a slightly folk feel.
Calling It certainly
picks up again after the previous track, its rocky and pacy, it’s very much a statement
- I’m done, its over Bang Bang opens with drums rather than guitar, and
is probably the most “country” part of the album, but firmly modern country.
The final track is Every
Road. It’s a reflective song, the tempo
moving from the slow opening moving up to a guitar driven chorus. The mix of tempos throughout make for a great
final track on an album that is a variety show from start to finish that will
keep you in your seat to see what happens next.
Most albums are named after
one of the tracks but titling this album “The Carnival” is spot on. A
blend of new songs and some favourites, Eleri has been on a physical and
metaphorical journey, now she gets to set up her tent and present her show.
The Carnival, the new album from Eleri is available to download and stream from Friday 13 October with an album launch on Saturday 14 October
You can find Eleri on Facebook and Instagram and follow her on Spotify
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