Review:  Elf Power: The Naughty Villain/The Great Society (double A side)

Label: Shifty Disco

Released: March 4th 2002

Elves, it would seem, are notoriously reluctant to take any credit for their handiwork. They�re the little creatures who arrived in the dead of night to help the poor overworked shoemaker, only to leave before sunrise without so much as a trace of a little green footprint. Similarly, Elf Power are happy to make great psychedelic pop songs and leave more celebrated outfits as Black Rebel Motorcycle Club to bask in the critical acclaim of being the new Jesus and Mary Chain. The jangly folk-pop of �The Naughty Villain� with its flute (flute!) hook and dreamy vocals evokes both the Mary Chain and the more pop sensibilities of Grandaddy, while �The Great Society�, a song about �making the world a better place� manages to stay the right side of twee and simply provides a great slice of 60s-esque pop. It can�t be long before Elf Power move off indier-than-thou label Shifty Disco and step into the limelight themselves.

Kate Ballinger