Marking a collaboration between two iconic British artists, experimental group Elegiac has released “Vous Et Ici” as a single leading up to the release of their self-titled debut on Friday, March 26th. The duo is composed of post-punk bassist/vocalist Edvard Graham Lewis (Wire, He Said) and saxophonist/vocalist Ted Milton (Blurt), and their collaboration creates envelope-pushing no-wave without compromising on snappy grooves.
The drum sequencing on the track compels the listener to bob their head before being disrupted by the entrance of Milton’s sax line. Evoking Pharoah Sanders in his screeching tone, he makes no accommodation on the artistic direction of the project. To both experienced and new free jazz listeners, the sax hook carries furious abrasion, but proves to be irresistibly catchy. Graham’s bass playing drives the song forward, maintaining energy through the subtle shifts in electronic timbre. The spoken word passages weaving the track together draw the listener into deep swirling stanzas of unrequited love, delivered with Vincent-Price-ian macabre. As the speaker describes the target of his obsession, Romantic-inflected synthesizers create a lush, dark atmosphere appropriate for the mania of love not returned. With electronic composer Sam Britton arranging and mixing the project, “Vous Et Ici” rides leisurely on the drum programming amidst squealing horns, supple textures, and infectious electronic blips.
The upcoming full-length release from the duo promises to be danceable, explorative, and cryptic in its darkness, and Elegiac has the potential to be a modern post-punk classic down the line.
