Despite the relative youth of its members, The Elms are hardly newcomers to the pop/rock scene. Founded in 1996 by siblings Owen and Chris Thomas, the band, then known as Just Visiting, spent several months playing concerts and festivals before entering the studio to record their first independent album, Gardenshow. The group's second indie album, Just Visiting, followed in 1998. After changing its name to The Elms, the band landed a major label deal with Sparrow Records and released a five-song EP in 2000. The self-titled effort earned favorable reviews and was commercially successful as well, placing the single "Lifeboat" into the middle reaches of the Top 20.
The group's latest effort, The Big Surprise, combines seven new songs with three tracks from the EP. Like the EP, Surprise continues the group's exploration of classic '60s and early '70s pop/rock. The lively lead off track, "Hey, Hey," leaps out of the starting gate with an infectious joy that is equal parts Bay City Rollers and a high school pep rally. "Lifeboat" and "Who Got the Meaning?" are similarly exuberant numbers whose driving rhythms and eminently hummable melody lines are the hallmarks of any well-written power pop composition. The band handles the softer side of the musical coin with equal aplomb. "Here's My Hand" is a lushly textured composition whose simplicity winds up being its main strength. The exaggerated orchestral flourishes of the title track, on the other hand, recall the semi-quirky combination of pop and classical styles of ELO's finest mid-'70s works. And the earnest vocals and spirited cello work of "You Get Me Every Time" instill the best-of-album track with a mood that mirrors both the poignancy of "Eleanor Rigby" and the thoughtful melancholy of the Beach Boys' "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times."
Despite their proficient navigation of the pop/rock terrain, the band does manage a wrong turn now and then. Owen Thomas' vocals are occasionally strained on the upper register of songs like the modern rock-influenced "A Minute to Ourselves." And the semi-shrill falsetto delivery on the otherwise mellow "The Buzzing Won't Stop!" is mostly ill-conceived. Lyrically, too, a small handful of the songs, such as "You're Glowing" (If you're down the tracks/ I'll ride the train/ If you're in the sky/ I'll fly a plane), opt for formula over inventiveness. That said, though, the group's miscues, both lyrically and vocally, are decidedly few and far between. To be sure, the majority of the album's songs, like "The Big Surprise" (I'm your hand grenade and your lemonade/ 'Cause I'll blow up and leave you sour), paint remarkably vivid word pictures of relational distress. And entries such as "You Get Me Every Time" (I can see a hundred miles away/ But I can't see what's right before my eyes/ And when I'm through trying to be brave/ Then I realize that all my courage dies) display extraordinary insight for a group whose members have yet to reach their mid-twenties. Likewise, it is Owen's energetic and ardent vocalizing that is perhaps the key factor in endowing the album with its distinctively high-spirited and heartfelt quality. All said and done, "The Big Surprise" ranks as an eminently solid and enjoyable slice of Christian power pop and offers up ample proof that the Elms have indeed made good on the talent promised by their debut EP.
4 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Rebel Base 2001Reviewed by Josh HurstAs a music critic, one of the most frustrating feelings in the world is when I hear a band that I really like, but they aren't particularly good. The Elms is a band that personifies this dilemma nicely. On the one hand, The Elms' debut full-length record, Big Surprise, boasts insanely catchy melodies, simple-yet-effective instrumentation, and some overall satisfying lyrics. On the other hand, The…The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Ken MuellerThere has been a lot of buzz about this album, with everyone talking about the infectious, intelligent pop of The Elms. Unfortunately, the disc does not live up to those expectations. The big surprise with "Big Surprise" is that it comes off like the latest in a long list of "Hey, look, I signed to a major CCM label" releases. Most of the buzz I have heard comes from their indie days, but now…The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Aaron BellIt takes a special kind of music to be truly fun. This release from The Elms is that kind of music. It's summer music, the kind of stuff you put on at a backyard barbecue or a day at the beach throwing a frisbee around. It's fun! The opening track "Hey Hey" is a nice start with its mix of Euro-pop/rock and horns. It is a nice summer sound which would make the perfect addition to a summer…The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Brian A. SmithIndiana quartet, The Elms, have the potential to be Christian rock's next big thing. With a style formerly dubbed "power pop," the band's debut album The Big Surprise captures nuances of well-known groups like PFR, The Waiting, Cheap Trick and The Replacements, while still managing to sneak in a distinctive sound sure to identify them. This is a band that will be all over Christian radio this…Similar sounding releases
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