EL VY - Return To The Moon (4AD) 2015
7
Return to the Moon manages to be playful and inject an emotional depth that has characterized Matt Berninger’s career as an artist with The National. Brent Knopf’s (Menomena) output pushes Matt to a new musical landscape without being too hostile. There’s a clear search for a balance between the light/soft and the heavy/dark. The fucking star here is definitely Brent. He was clearly on a mission that included throwing as much curved balls as possible. Even if in the end it is clear that this album would gain immensely by a more cohesive construction, there’s no denying that it’s a work born out of love, seriousness, and an honest search for something as meaningful as challenging. EL VY’s debut is hopefully just the beginning.