If you’ll permit us some 21st century poetic license for a moment, Elephant’s ‘Sky Swimming’ is much like phone dating app Tinder. It brims with seductive imagery, it’s intensely hard to tear yourself away from once immersed, and it provides an assuaging comfort blanket for the heartbroken.
The London duo of Christian Pinchbeck and Amelia Rivas, however, sit at the polar opposite end of the superficiality scale to the swipers’ paradise, as their beautiful debut is layered deep with almost impossibly gorgeous, wistful nuances.
The pair’s own intimate relationship broke down during recording, and on moments like ‘Skyscraper’ and the title track you can almost hear the sighs of a strained heart’s meek submission. A damaged but delightful long-player, then, perfect for fans of Daughter and Camera Obscura.
9/10
Words: Jack Scourfield
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