Richardine Bartee
Ever just wanted a playlist that brings great vibes when you want to feel like you’re in the open air, on a private beach? Okay, maybe, that’s not your lifestyle. How about, you just got paid, and you’re going to your favourite store to buy the item you’ve been craving? You’re at your goal weight, you’re turning heads, and everything is alright. That’s how Elephant Castle’s record feels, like an orb of endless possibilities and internal happiness. Ironically, the title doesn’t fit the production style, but I like to think of it as the kind of song you’d play when you’re ready not to feel like a write-off.
The musician, Phil Danyew, is from Oceanside, California, and used to play in the band Foster the People for six years and is now on his own. The track is his second single, which is a follow-up to his debut ‘Cool to be Unhappy’, which is also a glum title depending on how you interpret it and if you’re ready to talk about mental health and the healthiness of balance. Inspired early on at the age of twelve, the likes of The Beach Boys, Elvis, The Temptations, and The Beatles, he refers to Elephant Castle as a “response to [his] early influences, infused with love for analogue [synths.]”
