Photos: Jon Angel
Words: Slade Rand
Elephant Revival played a poignant and fine-tuned show at Mission Ballroom last week, complete with floating acrobats and familial love.
The folk musicians from Lyons, CO paired well with Rising Appalachia, who played an opening set and later shared the stage for some personal tunes. Elephant Revival’s dreamlike bluegrass took surprising turns during the two-hour show; bandmates passed solos and vocals back and forth while guest players flowed in and out.
Takes on Kermit the Frog’s ‘Rainbow Connection’ and Gnarles Barkley’s ‘Crazy’ were welcome detours from the wholly original soundtrack Elephant Revival provided the Denver crowd. The subtle music grabbed attention all night, sometimes coming from only a washboard and a vocalist or two.
The band is Bonnie Paine on cello and washboard, Bridget Law on fiddle, Charlie Rose on banjo and mandolin, Dango Rose on bass and also mandolin, Daniel Sproul on guitar and Darren Garvey on percussion. They harmonize all together, creating standout moments acapella.
Dispersed clouds dotted the space between bandmates across the stage, and Elephant Revival opened its show with ‘The Drop.’
“Once I was a bid drop of water,” Bonnie sang, setting the tone for a night of music about the elements and changing seasons.
The band stuck to its worldly folk roots through its opening few songs, highlighting mandolin and washboard during ‘The Pasture’ next.
Where the music moved quietly at times, Elephant Revival brought fireworks in the form of two aerialists and a drumline throughout the night. The Father Time Drumline marched on from stage right while the band sang about pirates during ‘Furthest Shore.’
“How’s your inner muppet doing?” Daniel asked bandmate Charlie cross-stage later on.
Charlie told the crowd about his eight-month old daughter and began a fun version of ‘The Rainbow Connection,’ one of her favorites. The band whipped up a rapid-fire jam out of that one, picking and smiling through the bluegrass romp.
Ariana Papousek and Peter Holben, friends of the band from the Denver Circus Collective, went soaring during ‘Ring Around the Moon’ and newer tune ‘All Sides.’
Papousek twisted and swung above the band without a net, while just outside a full moon rose above the venue.
The duet leading Rising Apalachia, Chloe and Leah Smith, are sisters who have lived all over the American Southeast. The Smith women co-wrote a song with Elephant Revival in the aftermath of storms this past September in North Carolina. They performed ‘Falls Rain’ with Bridget and Bonnie around a single mic downstage toward the middle of Elephant Revival’s set.
Rising Appalachia is centered on Chloe and Leah on vocals, guitar, banjo and more, with Biko Casini on percussion, David Brown on upright bass and Duncan Wickel on fiddle. The organic music sets a relaxing mood — the players’ genuine connection to their art is clear.
Casini sat in with Elephant Revival later to lead a song in Spanish.
Michelle Pietrafitta joined the big band on percussion for a closing song, a familiar face among Colorado string players. Elephant Revival tapped into the rich, local well time and time again at Mission Ballroom.
The dreamlike show was deeply tied to the Colorado experience, connecting friends and art forms from across the front range all night long.
See a full gallery shot by Jon Angel below:
After Midnight 
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