Elephant Castle and the progressive psych rock, art pop imaginings of "Caught In A Twilight Zone"

 

"I don’t know what you’ve been told / But you’ve been sucking poison / From the lip of highball glass..."

Dip your head into the dreamy musical mind bending maze of "Caught In A Twilight Zone" and you might gleefully lose your way. Elephant Castle, the retro inspired indie rock / art pop project of L.A. based singer / multi-instrumentalist Phil Danyew, is awash in deep pools of creativity and this track specifically feels incredibly trippy. The narrative here flows like a Wizard of Oz daydream. There are art rock ramping up psychedelia and when the musical breakdowns happen (lead by a crazy unbelievably expansive bass line) it feels exquisitely beautiful. Churned together with moments of 70's progressive glam and 80's power pop, and more contemporary psych pop (circa 2005 - 2010) all at once like an amalgam of artists like Be Bop Deluxe, Bruce Wooley and the Camera Club, The Buggles and MGMT / Unknown Mortal Orchestra collectively.  

Phil reveals the genesis of this track:

"Last summer, I took my dog to the park. Later that morning, I woke up on the ground not knowing where I was. I was diagnosed with with a concussion and retrograde amnesia at the hospital. I’m not quite the same and I still don’t know what happened. This song is about the parallels between hitting my brain against the ground and surviving the dumpster fire that was 2020."

Unbelievable artful track born out of a scary moment and lost time.

-Robb Donker Curtius

Elephant Castle · Caught In A Twilight Zone

THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

https://www.facebook.com/elephantcastleofficial

https://twitter.com/cooltobeunhappy

https://www.instagram.com/elephantcastleofficial/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVD22ScNmtIzzpaWmCdzUOw

https://soundcloud.com/elephantcastlemusic


Elephant Castle - the retro-inspired indie rock project from Los Angeles-based singer and multi-instrumentalist Phil Danyew, formed in late 2019. The first single, “Cool To Be Unhappy,” was released on March 27, 2020 with warm welcome. A fresh take on the break-up ballad, Rolling Stone called the track a "roll-around-in-your-underwear-while-the-sun-seeps-through-the-window song.”

Elephant Castle released four subsequent singles with enthusiastic buzz and is back for their second release of 2021. Swimming with summery optimism, “French Food” is a cheeky daydream about fine dining after living in isolation for a year. Their third single of the year will be released on October 1st. Leaning into dreamy psychedelia, "Rocket To The Moon” is a spacey fantasy about escaping gravity for a more harmonious existence on the moon.

Raised in Oceanside, CA, Danyew has been writing and recording music since age 12 after stealing his father’s tape recorder. Growing up listening to 50s and 60s oldies, Elephant Castle is a response to these early influences combined with a love for vintage synths, layered vocals, the dreamy sounds of tape saturation and analog gear.

Danyew spent six years as a touring member of the band Foster the People. He left at the beginning of 2020 to pursue his own music.

Elephant Castle, Psychedelic Rock, Indie Rock, alt pop, Phil Danyew, singer songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, concussion and retrograde amnesia, dreamy implosion, progressive glam, art rock,