The Elected - Me First

With a host of musical artists usually aligned with Saddle Creek Records [members of Rilo Kiley wrote the record with Azure Ray’s Orenda Fink guesting], The Elected effectively transition to the indie music institution that is Sub Pop. With a lo-fi sound that filters bits of indie-rock into their alt-country foundation, The Elected have crafted an album that is at once laidback and modest but always sonically compelling and interesting enough to constantly keep your ears gripped to your stereo. Acoustic instruments supply much of Me First’s base with vocal harmonies, strings, keyboards, harmonicas, pianos, woodwinds, and electronics completing much of the sound structure that The Elected is built upon. The sound amounts to what I can imagine an alt-country version of Bright Eyes would sound like. But, most importantly, the record succeeds – Me First is pastoral and country-driven but easily crosses over into numerous other avenues of sound to make the album multifaceted and diverse. [www.subpop.com]