Dusty Medical recently released the debut single by the Milwaukee three-piece, Elephant Walk. As a signifier to the revival of jangly, folkish strum that have seemed to pile up neck-high over the past couple of years with bands like Goodnight Loving, Thomas Function and the Spider Bags, Elephant Walk are on a freshly swept dirt path of earthy, somewhat innocent, if not slightly drunk, music that is as timely as it is fresh. Juxtaposing their music with a name that mysteriously indicates a plodding, fumbling sound may add a layer of cacoethes impossible to ignore, but it's their obvious talent for concocting ditties that are reminiscent of later summer's weed-laced pow wows that warm you up inside with instant nostalgia, and will get you wanting to hug your acquaintances and wrap yourself with a dirty blanket from the trunk of your car.
On their single here, they stroll through three solid slingers. The a-side and title track, "Swim the Sea" frolics along with the same sing-along quality as do the other songs, but builds to an open-chord neck-breaking pace that snaps off clean from the b-side. And on the flipside, their song, "Nadine" is a bit slowed down, and contains a hook that slides in a little too close to The The Dutchess And The Duke's song "Mary," but that's okay, because I'm pretty sure they took it from The Stones. Regardless, You should pick this single up, it's a good one, and since you're there you should probably pick-up the Midwest Beat double 7" and the new LiveFastDie LP right HERE.
