ELL V GORE play Blk Box June 13 at 11 pm and the Garrison June 16 at 10 pm as part of NXNE. Rating: NNNN
We won’t judge you if you aren’t immediately familiar with Elliott Jones and his band, Ell V Gore. He tends to prefer furtive, shadowy basements. But for those following the singer/guitarist since his days with Guelph sax-punks Brides, his debut EP is a long time coming.
A major promoter of Toronto’s underground from the actual underground, Jones organizes dark synth-wave after-parties (most often at infamous basement den Comfort Zone) and is head of Pretty Pretty Records. But he’s also been cranking out noisy post-punk as the leader of Ell V Gore for years and, with every show, sharpening the cacophony into the precise, danceable chill heard on Sex Static.
Four songs long, it’s impeccably composed and produced, with Jones’s yelp tamed by echo and his energetic guitar sharing space with ominous synths. It’s creepy and sexy at the same time, and hopefully a preview of more to come.
Top track: Lobotomy
