Through politically and sexually-charged lyrics harmonized with island drums and some decent bass, Elan managed to create his album “Together as One,” a must-have for hot-boxed house parties everywhere. This repetitive reggae-pop record is worthy of being background-music only.
The Los Angeles born and raised Elan may not quite be free from the lyrical shackles he wore for three and a half years as lead vocalist for the legendary Wailers.
According to elanmusic.com, one of the biggest compliments of Elan’s career “came when some Wailers fans mistook three songs in the band’s set taken from the album he recorded for Bob Marley originals,” and it is this that suggests that though Elan has been making a name for himself in his genre, it has not necessarily been a name of his own. “Together as One” is being cast all over MySpace and hyped as being this “unique combination of the young singer-songwriter’s musical influences, which are heavy on the island sounds and rhythms, but also incorporate elements of classic American R&B and soul, Fela Kuti-inspired African rhythms and even ’80s new wave pop like Depeche Mode and the Cure,” according to Elan’s MySpace.
However, to the untrained ear of your average college student, it sounds like Sean Paul, mellow after a good blaze, and singing along with Sebastian and the rest of his “Under the Sea” orchestra in Disney’s “The Little Mermaid.”
“Together as One,” sounds entirely unsurprising and unoriginal. The reggae meets soul and pop mix is nothing Sublime and 311 have not already done. Elan’s lyrics, however, are a possible window into who he really is.
He takes some time out of singing about marijuana and the opposite sex to express his thoughts about the “economic and other injustices he saw first-hand while traveling the world,” according to his Web site, in “I Wanna Yell.” His lyrical diversity shows that there is something behind the over-used beats Elan sings to.
While Elan’s album contains 11-songs that seem un-differentiable, there are moments of individualism that stand out, and it is in those sporadic verses where hope for Elan’s future lies. “Together as One” is a decent debut album; we can only hope that Elan uses it as a launchpad and from it, develops a style all his own, a style that will demand the attention of his listeners, not just discreetly pulse through a crowded room.
Elan has yet to hit the West Coast on his album tour. He has dates scheduled all over the Midwest and East Coast. He is also going overseas with several dates scheduled in Germany.