Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

Elsinore are an adventurous pop group from Illinois whose music combines elements of folk-rock and alt-country as well as indie pop, the latter influence growing stronger as the group's history wears on. Elsinore were formed in 2004 when songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist Ryan Groff, keyboard player and vocalist Mark Woolwine, and drummer and vocalist Dave Pride were all studying music at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, IL. The three classmates became friends, and as they discovered they had similar tastes in music, they got together to play open mike nights at Charleston night spots. The three became regulars on the local music scene, and after they met another EIU student, bassist and vocalist Chris Eitel, he joined the group and Elsinore was born.

In 2005, the group released On Display: A Live CD, which as the title suggested captured the sound of the group's concert set. A studio album followed, 2006's Nothing for Design, and an EP, The General, was released in 2008. The band developed a passionate following in their hometown of Champaign and attracted attention on the road, touring both as headliners and as openers for St. Vincent. In 2009, Elsinore finished work on their second studio album, the ambitious Yes Yes Yes, their first for the Parasol label; the album's 2010 release became unexpectedly controversial when the estate of noted pop artist Roy Lichtenstein threatened a lawsuit against the group. The cover featured a painting by Brittany Pyle that was adapted from an image from a comic book; the same image was appropriated by Lichtenstein in his painting Kiss V, and Lichtenstein's representatives initially contended Pyle's work infringed on their copyrights. The suit was eventually abandoned and Yes Yes Yes was released without incident.

Biography by Mark Deming, Allmusic.com

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

The entire live cd is nothing short of amazing. You can feel the love Elsinore has for performing. Ben Folds would be proud of the lil' diddies on the piano. Vampire in My Town is the BEST song hands down. I MUST hear that song every couple of days. The musical jam session followed by the incredible vocals takes my breath away.

Review by Jackaay, CDBaby.com

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

"Nothing for Design" was recorded with Mark Rubel at his Pogo Studio in Champaign, IL from October 2005 to February 2006, and was mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side Music, who was simultaneously mastering Sufjan Stevens' upcoming release. The album is 12 songs and 53 minutes. Half of the songs were on our live album from October and the other half are completely new and previously unreleased. This is our first full-length studio album and we couldn't be happier with what those seven months culminated into. Our hearts and minds and sweat are laced into this recording, hinting at our personal lives, but also telling fictions of the world around us here in Illinois. This is our first big step into the music world, and along with a summer tour of the Midwest, we hope it pushes us up to the next level on the touring-band totem pole.

From the first notes of the opening "Mind, Space, and Time" through live favorites like "Vampire in My Town" and "The Rise," the band captures the listener's attention with the very best that the Americana genre has to offer - engaging lyrics and a sound that feels like coming home.

– Susan Schomburg, Weekly Buzz

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

This EP is a momentum builder for the full-length album we've been making since October 2007. 'The General' will also be on the full-length, 'Antonymity' is a studio b-side from a session in Chicago we did summer 2007, and 'Wooden Houses' is just piano and voice, a stripped-down version for the EP. A full-band version of this song will be featured on the full-length album.

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

This collection of songs brings the Champaign-Urbana, IL wonder-pop quintet one step closer to their potential. The EP features a preview of two tracks from their upcoming full-length, an alternate and string-heavy version of another, a brand new, road-tested home recording, as well as an invincibly addictive remix by Gentleman Auction House frontman Eric Enger.

The songwriting here has evolved multi-fold over the past few years. Playful yet poetic lyricism compliments magnetic and intelligent arrangements (this being the first Elsinore release to feature scores of strings and horns). “Chemicals” itself is either a rock song disguised as a love song, or vice versa. The song sparks with its own colorful energy, featuring an irresistible, soaring hook. It is clean and catchy, but hardly simple. “Body of Water” and "Breathing Light" showcase the now fine-tuned lyricism present throughout the EP; images of blood, water, language – simple, unconscious elements that are easily overlooked in the day-to-day. The Pet Sounds-esque "Evens" takes the band in a new sonic direction and begs for repeat headphone listens.

The pace of this fiery Midwestern workhorse has led to an impressive and incredibly consumable resume. This and The General EP (summer 2008) precede the Yes Yes Yes full-length, set to be released this summer on Parasol Records.

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

Elsinore's third album is an ambitious step forward for the Illinois-based band; the folkie influences and gentle alt-country accents that dominated their first two full-length sets have been left by the side of the road, and instead, Yes Yes Yes is an intelligent, carefully crafted exercise in indie pop, with artfully executed arrangements that make room for electric guitars, banks of keyboards, and even strings and horns. At the same time, while Elsinore's earlier work often sounded cheerful but tentative, Yes Yes Yes radiates confidence in its broader, bolder musical approach, and if the melodic style of key songwriter Ryan Groff bears a very real resemblance to his earlier work, these new songs sound remarkably well-suited to the eclectic outlook of Yes Yes Yes, and the harmonies that played a significant part in Elsinore's music from the beginning are pressed into even greater service on these sessions. Groff and his bandmates (Chris Eitel on bass, David Pride on drums, and Mark Woolwine on keyboards) certainly get a valuable assist from producers Adam Schmitt and Anthony Gravino, whose crisp but unobtrusive audio brings together the many layers of music without sounding muddy or overly busy, along with the small army of guest musicians credited on this set, but it's the strength of the songs and the clarity of vision Elsinore bring to this music that make the album so impressive; ambition alone doesn't make for a great record unless you have the skills to do something with your ideas, and Yes Yes Yes is firm evidence this group has both form and content well in hand.

Review by Mark Deming, Allmusic.com

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

Elsinore returns triumphant with Life Inside an Elephant, a masterful EP composed from inside the belly of a beast.

As the story goes… Upon the eve of the band’s 100th tour date supporting 2010’s acclaimed Yes Yes Yes full length, drummer Dave Pride was struck by a negligent drunk driver while loading gear into the van. While his injuries were not life threatening, this highly traumatic experience did force the band into an early hibernation where songwriter Ryan Groff discovered the most prolific writing spell of his career.

The EP was mixed by new ally Beau Sorenson (Death Cab for Cutie, Sparklehorse), who also provided a deeply hypnotic remix of the title track.

Life Inside an Elephant is as much a wintry meditation on insecure love as it is an assertive proclamation of a young band on the absolute brink of its songwriting potential.

×

Elsinore - Albums Collection 2005-2013 (7CD) [Re-Up]

Close

The cool but engaging indie pop of Elsinore's sophomore album Yes Yes Yes gets just a bit cooler and more polished on their third studio effort, 2013's Push/Pull. With group leader/guitarist/lead vocalist Ryan Groff and keyboard man Mark Woolwine joined by a new rhythm section for this album (bassist Brad Threlkeld and drummer James Treichler), Elsinore's music is lively and full of engaging melodies and memorable hooks on Push/Pull. But this album also sounds significantly less organic and spontaneous than Elsinore sounded in their early days, and Push/Pull plays like a piece of professional studio craftsmanship rather than the work of a band that ever intends to play this music in front of an audience, which drains much of the life out of these songs. (Significantly, producer Beau Sorenson gets a songwriting credit on all tracks.) Elsinore never sounded quite so much like Coldplay as they do on Push/Pull, and in this case, that's not a compliment; while Groff and company seemed to be having fun with the more ambitious approach of Yes Yes Yes, Push/Pull seems slicker but smaller at the same time, and for all the elegance of the product, there's noticeably less joy in the brilliantly executed harmonies and solid instrumental work here than in Elsinore's best work. There are still some splendid melodies on board (particularly on "Residential Weather" and "The Art of Pulling"), and you have to give Elsinore credit for growing and evolving with each album. But Push/Pull suggests this band has traded some of their wit and passion for a shining veneer, and veneer is rarely an ingredient in a great album.

Review by Mark Deming, Allmusic.com