Listen: Elder Island - "What It's Worth"

12 May 2014, 12:45 | Written by Rebecca Jayne Higgins

(Tracks)

(Elder Island)

Elder Island, despite still being relatively unheard of, manage to enviably bypass being immediately boxed in to any specific musical style on their debut release, the genre-dodging “What It’s Worth”. A cool mix of effortless percussion, including elements of an unexpected cello and soulful, RnB tinged vocals, the trio create erratic yet charming beats that fuse perfectly with singer Katy Sargent’s spirited tone.

With a rhythm that is established and continuously carried throughout by a series of haphazard handclaps, “What It’s Worth” not only manages to re-introduce modern pop-influenced music to the often avoided form of percussion, but it makes it sound effortlessly refreshing and modern, too. Not afraid to weave together their range of influences into a multi-layered sound, “What It’s Worth” is alluring in its disorganisation and definitely adds to the anticipation as to exactly what the rest of Elder Island’s debut might sound like.

With their self-titled EP pegged for release in June via the promising new label, Four Thieves Records, “What It’s Worth” is a charismatically uncoordinated introduction into the threesome’s ability to create a sound that is more concerned with soul, substance and charm than with fitting in to a specific style.

Elder Island EP is released on 30 June.