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Elephant Sessions come to the Borders

Award-winning indie-folk band Elephant Sessions comes to Galashiels!

Hailing from the Highlands, Elephant Sessions exploded onto the indie-folk scene to unparalleled effect with their last album ‘All We Have Is Now’. The band has since appeared at some of the world’s most notable venues and festivals, and now they will be appearing in our very own Volunteer Hall in Galashiels on 24 May, where they will be performing tracks from their new album, ‘What Makes You’. Read on to find out more…

The band members, who met on the Newcastle University Folk Degree, have transformed traditional music. ‘What Makes You’, which is released on 10 May, sees the frontline of mandolin and fiddle pushing their limits, matching the percussive rhythm of drums, bass and guitar, whilst fusing with electronic dance beats. This is traditional music turned on its head, a re-invention of expectation; a brand-new sound. Music-lovers in the Borders should not miss this opportunity to see the band live in a local venue.

Opening 2018 as winners of ‘Album of the Year’ at the BBC Scotland Trad Awards, Elephant Sessions went on to become finalists as ‘Best Group’ at the BBC Radio 2 Awards. In May last year, Belhaven Brewery got together with the band to award the first ever Belhaven Bursary for innovation in music. The bursary amount matches the Mercury Music prize and was awarded in recognition of their unique and outstanding sound. It was accompanied by the band’s own beer ‘Elephant Sessions Ale’, which was launched in May 2018.

In August, the band was shortlisted for ‘Scottish Album of the Year’: an award covering every genre of music from indie, blues and rock to pop, folk – and the individual sound that is Elephant Sessions. The band ended 2018 by picking up the coveted ‘Live Band of the Year’ award at the BBC Scots Trad Awards.

This year they head over to the US to play at the Belhaven Brew celebrations at Tartan Week in New York, before appearing at Bluesfest in Australia as part of the 30th anniversary line-up, and making a debut at Merlefest in the US. They then head back to the UK for album tour, which takes in Liverpool Philharmonic, Oban Live, and The Gathering, Inverness – as well as Volunteer Hall, Galashiels!

“What Makes You’ is a musical progression of the journey the band have been on since the last album,” said mandolin player, Alasdair Taylor. “We feel like our sound has matured and we’re playing and writing the music that we really want to be playing.

“Writing and performing the music from this new album has been so much fun so far and we can’t wait to release it for everyone to hear.”

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