Elf Power Touring in Support of Forthcoming Album

However, years after the demise of the Elephant 6 collective, Elf Power continue to pump out quality records, tour their asses off, and, in the case of Elf Power leader Andrew Rieger, run Orange Twin, a record label and "pedestrian-based eco-village." It's a busy life.

Pitchfork spoke to Rieger via email about Elf Power's current U.S. tour and upcoming full-length, which you probably didn't even know existed. Well, surprise! Rieger says they've just completed recording their as-yet-untitled eighth album, with a lineup that includes multi-instrumentalists Laura Carter and Derek Almstead, bassist Bryan Poole, guitarist Jimmy Hughes, drummer Josh Lott, John Fernandes of Olivia Tremor Control on violin, Heather McIntosh of Japancakes on cello, and Deanna Varagonna of Lambchop on saxophone. As far as the sound of the new record, Rieger quotes fan comments like "evil gypsy music" and "R.E.M.'s Chronic Town meets Bob Dylan's Desire."

"It's definitely folkier and more orchestrated than the last few Elf Power records," Rieger continues, "though this album still rocks pretty hard at times, in...a face-melting psychedelic manner. There's lots of 12-string acoustic guitar, accordion, cello, and violin arrangements, which gives the tunes somewhat of a rockin' gypsy music flavor." According to Reiger, they're still figuring out which label to release it on, though it should be out in Spring 2006, after which they'll spend the better part of the year touring.

Wait, did we say touring? Back to the point:

11-10 Lexington, KY - Dame *
11-11 Chicago, IL - Subterranean $
11-12 Madison, WI - Café Montmartre
11-14 Kalamazoo, MI - Kraftbrau Brewery &
11-15 Lansing, MI - Mac's Bar &
11-16 Pittsburgh, PA - Brillobox
11-17 New York, NY - Knitting Factory #
11-18 New London, CT - Brass Rail
11-19 Hartford, CT - The Bistro at Trinity College
11-20 Hoboken, NJ - Maxwell's @
11-21 Washington, DC - Warehouse Next Door
11-22 Charlotte, NC - Tremont Music Hall @
11-23 Atlanta, GA - The Earl @

* with the Impossible Shapes, Los Pepiniyoz
$ with the Living Blue, Moxie Motive
& with Those Transatlantics
# with the King of France, Stefanie Drootin & Gretta Cohn
@ with the Earlies

Rieger also set us up with the tracklist for the upcoming record, and since we like you...:

01 Come Lie Down With Me (and Sing My Song)
02 An Old Familiar Scene
03 Rolling Black Water
04 King of Earth
05 Peel Back the Moon, Beware
06 23RD Dream
07 Somewhere Down the River
08 The Spider and the Fly
09 Forming
10 All the World Is Waiting
11 Under the Northern Sky
12 Come Back to the Web

Elf Power: http://www.elfpower.com
Orange Twin: http://www.orangetwin.com