After a slew of psychedelic singles, Montreal-based modern psych-pop band Elephant Stone will release their new EP Le voyage de M. Lonely dans la lune this Friday (2/18) via Elephants On Parade. Today, they share the final peek into the concept EP with the forlorn, dazed out single “Solitude.” Following previous frenetic releases “La fusée du chagrin” and “M. Lonely” where the hermetic titular character plans and makes his solitary escape from earth, today’s track is arguably the most solemn of the collection, where M. Lonely now mourns what his isolation has given him, grieving and longing for what he left back home.
Dhir explains, “I was deep into The Pretty Thing’s ‘Parachute’ when I wrote this one. I kept hearing this harmony that reminded me of them. However, once recorded, it sounded nothing like them. I love the gentleness of the tune…it’s a swing ballad with a ‘himalayan mountain top’ solo by Robbie…. something like Slash’s solo in the video for ‘November Rain’.” The band will also be embarking on a North American tour this upcoming May following an appearance at SXSW, with dates below and tickets available here.
Le voyage de M. Lonely dans la lune picks up the personal aspects of survival explored on the group’s previous album Hollow, and what that means on a dying planet with or without people. “I built this storyline about a hermit who is very content in his solitary world, until a world event happens that causes everyone else to stay home as well…sound familiar?” Dhir explains. “He sees this as a mockery of him and his choices, deciding instead to build a rocket ship to the moon to be left alone.” Unraveling over the course of four songs with raucous hooks and voltaic synths on the first two tracks, and lonely, soft melodies on the last two, M. Lonely, Dhir says, “ultimately realizes he was happier back on imperfect earth with all of its imperfect people.”
Elephant Stone was born out of a need for refuge for Dhir. After playing in bands such as The Datsons and The High Dials, he picked up the sitar and began writing about personal experiences, leading to a carved out niche in the modern psych-rock genre by infusing it with some pop sensibilities. As a highly-regarded sitar player, Dhir has also collaborated with indie-rock icons like Beck, and legendary cult bands like The Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Black Angels, The Soundtrack of Our Lives, The Dream Syndicate, and many more. Dhir’s journey with music, in and out of Elephant Stone, was wrought with trying to find a place that fit him until he decided that what he made was worth sharing in the space that he created for himself. The best kind of music, and the stories paired with those sounds, often begin with that internal excavation. “I only write about what I know and think I understand. As long as there’s Rishi, there’s going to be Elephant Stone.”
