Psychedelic and mind-soothing Elephant Stone hit the stage for the first performance of their headlining tour in Ottawa on Nov. 28. The fans, friends, and attendees of the show at Zaphod Beeblebrox, despite being in intimate numbers, were privileged to share the experience of watching such an instrumentally dynamic band.
The completion of the band’s setup and sound check left the audience curiously and anxiously anticipating the set. A variety of electronic instruments, more than a dozen guitar foot pedals and switches laid across the stage, along with guitars galore and Elephant Stone’s secret weapon – the sitar.
When the Montreal-based band hit the stage, vocalist, bassist, and satirist Rishi Dahr greeted the crowd with the first couple notes of the opening song and had everyone bopping their heads giving the band a very warm welcoming to Ottawa.
Groovy bass lines, upbeat drums, melodic guitar riffs, and Dahr’s soothing vocals hit the audience in full volume. Utilizing the venues great sound quality, the musicianship of Elephant Stone created a wonderfully mellow and positive atmosphere, perfect for the stresses of the individual audience members.
The band’s breathtaking instrumental talent and professionalism on stage made their live performance very enjoyable, playing the standard six-string guitar for songs such as “I Am Blind” then switching to the twelve-string electric guitar for songs such as “Love the Sinner,” and “Hate the Sin.” Frontman Dahr picked up the bass guitar at 15 years old, but also grew a love for the sitar. A main highlight of Elephant Stone’s set was watching Dahr’s sitar work.
He has established himself throughout the indie music scene as an extremely talented sitarist. In the middle of a song he would step back from the microphone, set aside his four stringed bass, sit down cross-legged, and play the beautifully written sitar parts bringing a great uniqueness to Elephant Stone’s live performance.
The crowd wasn’t just being involved in Elephant Stone’s set by bobbing their heads and tapping their toes. At these parts some audience members joined together and were dancing as if Elephant Stone’s music had allowed them to travel back in time to when a slow song played at their elementary school graduation dance.
Dahr’s sitar playing as well as the band’s song writing talents as a whole, allows for describing the band’s genre, one that they have tailored their own. The changing back and forth from bass and vocal to sitar in Elephant Stone’s set list added a new element to the show that took the performance to a whole new level. Elephant Stone’s instrumental diversity made the experience of watching them play live one to remember.
The kickoff of Elephant Stone’s headlining tour was a very entertaining show. The passion that each band member has for music really was expressed through their live performance. The clapping hands, bobbing heads, tapping toes, and couples dancing to the music of Elephant Stone never stopped, and it was very hard to ignore that the musicians and the audience loved every minute of it.
