Elephant Jake is an Indie-Punk band out of Orange County, NY. The band consists of Colin Harrison (guitar/vocals), Sal Fratto (guitar/vocals), Andrew Demarest (drums) and Kyle Mabee (bass). I first came across these guys over a year ago at Amityville Music Hall. All of the band members couldn’t make it to the show so one member hopped on stage and represented Elephant Jake. I was blown away with how well one guy could play the music of a four-piece band and keep the crowd so engaged. Since then, I’ve been an Elephant Jake supporter! The band released their new single, “Shipment Only Knifing” a couple of weeks back and it is awesome!
Elephant Jake impressed me much more with this song than I had anticipated. First off, I love the instrumentals that begin the song. The simple nature of the drums and guitar chords make for a catchy sound that will keep your foot tapping along. The opening verse of the song resonated with me so much, as I’m sure it will for most listeners. “Well I waste all my time, thinking maybe tomorrow things will change for the better. Well I know, I better get out of my head. Maybe my father was right all along when he said, ‘who’s got it better? Who’s got it better than you?’” We spend an absurd amount of time thinking about what could be, or how our lives could be so much better if this or that happened. I love the message behind this, that we have it much better than we realize. We’re so quick to judge our lives but never take the time to appreciate how well we actually have it. I think this is a message that everyone needs to hear! The other part of the song that really caught my attention was the kick-ass instrumental bridge. I love the way Elephant Jake turned a seemingly softer Indie track into a fast paced, heavy hitting Punk song. You know when you hear an instrumental/bridge/breakdown that send waves through your body? The type that makes you want to jump and dance around no matter what you’re doing? This instrumental bridge did exactly that for me!
I was able to chat with the boys of Elephant Jake for a little bit and they shared their thoughts on the “Shipment Only Knifing”. When asked about the meaning behind the title, the band stated “the title is ‘Shipment Only Knifing’ because my friend/brother Rob was playing Call of Duty with us one night and wanted to play the ‘Shipment’ map and only use knives. He said ‘shipment only knifing’ a million times and we thought it was funny.” They continue on, “this song means a lot to us. It discusses internal struggle and the value of the people around you. Sometimes it is hard to understand that you’re loved, but you are. Since I was a child, my father would always tell me ‘who’s got it better than you?’ when I was upset. He always helped me to see that things will and do get better. We’re very excited to share this song with all of you. We love performing this with the audience, not just to the audience. This song has a vocal line that is repeated over and over, ‘who’s got it better? Who’s got it better than you?’ We love singing this with everyone!”
Elephant Jake is a New York band that is continuing to impress audiences around the NY/NJ area. The songs these guys release keep getting better and better. I can’t wait to hear more new music and catch them live in action ASAP! Make sure you follow Elephant Jake on all social media, and listen to “Shipment Only Knifing” on the blog’s Spotify playlist: After Hours Review!