ALBUM REVIEW: Habits – Elephant Tree

Habits, the second album from London heavy rock/stoner/psych band ELEPHANT TREE, has been eagerly anticipated for the four years since the band’s self-titled album release. Originally a three-piece, their second album sees the band’s ranks swell, adding synths and additional guitars. With tracks laid down first as a guitar-bass-drum trio, Habits retains the energy of an ELEPHANT TREE live show, with the subsequent layering of synths and additional instrumental tracks creating depth beyond ‘the riff’.Droning instrumental Wake opens the album, drowning the listener in noise before lead single Sails kicks off with a punch in the face, a sharp intake of breath and at the same time a fuzzy embrace. Instantly recognisable in tone as ELEPHANT TREE, Sails is nevertheless an immediate indication of the expansion of the band’s sound on their newest release. Vocal harmonies and lush synth sounds create a ‘lighter in the air’ chorus bound for huge crowds. Sails is an excellent example of what drives Habits – the counterpoint of uplifting, buoyant music contrasted with lyrics rooted in mental anguish.

Faceless brings enormous riffs to the table – a powerful, rhythmically driven song daring the listener to keep their head upright. Signature Jack Townley and Peter Holland vocal harmonies bookend a simmering, captivating instrumental. The shimmering synths on Exit The Soul create an ethereal layer, highlighting the spiritual, soulful counterpoint to dark, grounded lyrics. A tortured, almost-strangled guitar solo rips through before a slow-to-a-crawl finale. A wall of feedback cements a very definite end to Side A.

The Fall Chorus kicks off the latter half of the album with a bright acoustic guitar-led track, enriched with strings. Vocals exposed in a way not heard before or elsewhere on the album, the song demonstrates a grace in songwriting and performance while conjuring a vision of dances round a woodland campfire. A song that had seen a few live outings in 2019, Bird, is transformed on record. Subject to a fair amount of reworking, the track is fully brought to life thanks to John Slattery‘s atmospheric synths and Townley and Holland‘s mournful vocals. A soaring chorus gives way to to some alt-prog noodling – but where there was some criticism of ELEPHANT TREE for having moments of overindulgence, Bird never loses its underlying sense of purpose.

Fans of the band’s debut album may be most pleased by Waster, a swaggering demonstration of how ELEPHANT TREE‘s sound has developed since their debut. A richer sound boosted again by the addition of synths, a fiery guitar solo and odd melodic flourishes add to the fearsome ELEPHANT TREE riffs to build on the their previous work and fire it into space. Broken Nails‘s haunting vocal harmonies and carefully picked out acoustic melodies are a beautiful, folk inspired, distraught introduction to a closing track that morphs seamlessly into stadium-rock fuzz and then a twisted, haunting, droning finale.

ELEPHANT TREE have unquestionably found themselves in Habits. Balancing a huge sound and brash riffing with poignant acoustic melodies over just seven songs, Habits is a testament to the reflection and persistence put into the vision for the record both by the band and producer. It’s always cheating to suggest an album of the year before it is even halfway through, but ELEPHANT TREE have set a near-stratospheric bar.

Rating: 9/10

Habits is set for release April 24th via Holy Roar Records. 

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