Drake Elliott and the outstretched love of "Rage of Cups"

 

"you're right on the edge, quick as a blink you could be gone..."

"Rage of Cups", the newest singly by singer-songwriter / multi-instrumentalist Drake Elliot and who I wrote about previously (HERE), spoke to me pretty much from the onset. The track, just shy or 3 minutes, somehow feels weighty, sober like hands and hugs reaching out to someone. The sound with a waltz of simple instrumentation has an undeniably late 60's / early 70's brightness within the melancholy. The patterned guitar offsets the meandering piano notes. I love the open spaces that allow you to hear the squeaks and guitar neck slides, the textured pushes, the bass melodies and the ethereal Mellotron from another world. Drake's vocal aesthetic is easy and real, you don't feel like it is over stylized or caged in any indie tropes of the day. This sound while nostalgic feels timeless, like a lullaby or eulogy.  

The artist shares this:

["Rage of Cups" is about reaching out for a friend in a dark space, while navigating your own path, and trying to share some insight into the significance and value of their life. the song ends in an observation of the impermanence of each moment, and that developing an that each ending is as beautiful as each beginning is where the true value of our time on earth lies.]

I urge you to click on Drake Elliott's Bandcamp link below and dive in. It will be an impactful swim. 

-Robb Donker Curtius

Drake Elliott · Rage Of Cups

THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

https://drakeelliott.bandcamp.com/album/mother-frog

https://soundcloud.com/drake-elliott

https://open.spotify.com/artist/5iRrYFwOC5LATHupLfzlrd

"Drake Elliott is a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter now based in Boston, MA. having formerly lived on a small island across from Anacortes WA. Having spent what feels like too many years playing in bands in the bay area and Portland (Floating Room, Gillian Frances, MEH,) he's found himself trying to write and explore different sounds. "Pause" is a track off his first attempt at a solo album, titled "Mother Frog," set to be released early February on Raw Pop Syndicate, a record label out of St Petersburg, Russia. It's a dragging celebration of breathing, waiting, and growing even through a sometimes grey world. Drake's songwriting on "Mother Frog" incorporates a variety of instruments and textures while remaining centered on acoustic guitar and vocals throughout. The songs are then strung together with overlapping drones and waves of keyboard tones, violins, vibraphones, and washed out electric guitars. With string arrangements and production by Portland Oregon's Mo Troper, the album was recorded in 2019 at a combination of Singing Sands Studios in Portland OR, The Unknown Studio in Anacortes WA, and various rooms and homes in between. The album is a delicate, sometimes unstable attempt at finding a warmer and quieter sound than where he's been before."

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 Power Pop, Garage Rock, Dream Pop, Drake Elliott, "Rage of Cups", mellotron, 70's sound, written for a friend, singer songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, Boston, piano, open spaces, guitar, melodic bass lines,