LPR Presents at Nublu (151 Ave C)
Sep
21
Fri September 21st, 2018
8:30PM
Nublu
Minimum Age: 21+
Doors Open: 8:00PM
Show Time: 8:30PM
Event Ticket: $15
Day of Show: $18
This is a general admission event at Nublu 151, 151 Avenue C, New York NY 10009
Pink Air is the new album from the distinctive and idio- syncratic New York cult band Elysian Fields. Their 11th record is a post-apocalyptic rock & roll joyride, touching on themes as far-reaching as natural disasters and global warming (the menacing, carnal “Storm Cellar”), life un- der a narcissist would-be dictator (“Philistine Jackknife”), white supremacy (“Knights Of The White Carnation”), censorship and the erasure of history (the dystopian sci- fi of “Karen 25”), vulnerable families falling through the social safety net (“Household Gods”), and meditations on time, friendship, loss, and mortality (“Time Capsule,” “Star Sheen”). Despite its mordant tone, the record never feels heavy handed, its mood lightened with infectious musical hooks and doses of humor and satire.
Pink Air was tracked in the mountains outside Woodstock NY and finished in the Manhattan lair of studio wunder- kind Thomas Bartlett (The National, Sufjan Stevens). Its eleven songs are united by rock strut and cavern reverb, swathed in the darkness of a beat club, pinned under the shadow of a modern nightmare.
Jennifer Charles’s singing has never been more iconic, infusing each track with her legendary onstage charis- ma, her beguiling song craft remaining undimmed, ev- ery chorus resonating like your car stereo was invented just to play it. The lean, stinging leads and hard-driven rhythm guitar playing comes from Bloedow, resting on the meaty groove and head-cracking backbeat of all-time major leaguer Matt Johnson (Jeff Buckley, St. Vincent), a key player in Elysian Fields since the band was forged in the music crucible of fin de siècle downtown New York City. Other giants of the NYC scene who appear are six- string ace Vernon Reid (Living Colour), returning EF col- laborator Mark Plati (David Bowie), Simon Hanes (Tredi- ci Bacci), and CJ Camieri (Paul Simon, Bon Iver), with Bartlett riding the virtual mixing desk.
Painting the present landscape in her precise and often caustic lyrics, Jennifer trains her gaze on the personal, in- timate and spiritual, depicting friends and lovers in a nov- elistic way, against a backdrop of change and fear, politi- cal and social riptides. Sex (“Tidal Wave”), and romance (“Beyond The Horizon”) are thrown in for good measure.
This Girl Angel and her feathered familiars in Elysian Fields have always soared among lofty air currents. For Pink Air, they clip those wings, touching down to roam the badlands with a rock & roll spirit animal.
Elysian Fields
The respected songwriting team of Jennifer Charles and Oren Bloedow mark thirty years on this night of their group Elysian Fields. Over the years the group has cultivated a devoted following worldwide with their moody, intimate sound, which defies easy categorization, weaving sultry vocals, poetic lyricism, and sensitive arrangements into a unique and enduring body of work.
At the heart of Elysian Fields is the chemistry between Charles and Bloedow, both accomplished musicians with eclectic backgrounds. Charles’s poetry and composition—literary and emotionally precise, sung with haunting sensuality—are paired with Bloedow’s textured guitar work, which can shimmer, sting, or whisper depending on the song’s demands. Their partnership has sustained the group through decades of shifting musical landscapes, maintaining a core aesthetic while exploring new sonic territories.
Lyrically, the band traffics in themes of love, longing, mortality, and mysticism. There’s often a cinematic quality to their songwriting—imagery-rich and emotionally immersive, as if each track were a scene in an unfolding dream. The many albums they have released (over thirteen), from Bleed Your Cedar (1996), to What The Thunder Said (2024) showcase their evolution.
Elysian Fields has collaborated with a wide array of musicians, from jazz luminaries to avant-garde figures. They will be appearing with some of their most treasured colleagues from the band’s rich history tonight. Expect special guests and highlights from the band’s vast catalogue of songs.
“Jennifer Charles and Oren Bloedow elevate the dialogue between voice and guitar to heights fascinating and haunting, creating exquisite works of art.” – Magic Magazine
“Oren Bloedow’s infinite instrumental palette, as loose as it is organic, is matched by Jennifer Charles’s often imitated but never equalled vocals…And we never tire of this precious alchemy…And we bow our heads in admiration, because to succeed again and again in making this singular flame travel, while never losing itself in mainstream temptations, is admirable…These two adventurers are above all true and great musicians.” – -Le Village Pop