MP3 Foreign Elfest - Blue Dirt / Red Carpet

ROCK: Indie/Psychedelic/Folk

11 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Psychedelic, ROCK: Folk Rock



Details:
ABOUT
The songs of Foreign Elfest make people move. They exhale a dynamic, frantic flavor that can do nothing else but pull in the lobes of an open-eared human. Soaked in wordplay and lush narration, a little door swings ajar to expose something near-otherworldly, yet feels as if youâve known that place since the day you were born. And somewhere in that fresh lyrical and aural acid trip, you happily sink into the vines of a Technicolor forest and become ironically at home in such a melancholy, yet cozy world.

HISTORY
Back then, Anna Schmidt and Benj Hochfelder were attending high school together in Kearney, Nebraska. Anna was in eleventh grade, Benj was a freshmen.

Benj had begun playing guitar and piano as an eight-year-old and had been raised by a single mother from the East Coast with a love of art and music, but without the funding to fully encourage either of them.

Two years passed and Anna had become a senior and graduated and Benj had just finished his tenth grade year. In late May of 2005, an honor choir they were involved in toured Costa Rica and sang all over that beautiful country. One late night Anna and Benj snuck out of their hotel huts and walked down to the water of the resort where they were staying that night. Under the shadow of a volcano, Anna and Benj found their lips giving birth to the future. This was somewhat problematic at first, considering Anna already had a boyfriend.

After they returned home to their flat little streets, Anna and Benjâs relationship kept blooming. They first began making music together in her brotherâs old bedroom with Anna drumming and Benj strumming. As summer came to a close, Anna left for college in Omaha, Nebraska. Benj was stuck in Kearney.

He drove eastward to see Anna in Omaha every other weekend. Their relationship was kept alive. It wasnât easy. Three days before Christmas 2005, Benj permanently packed up shop and moved to Omaha, despite his lack of a place to live. He was in eleventh grade.

Benj lived at Annaâs dorm in secrecy. Dorm residents werenât allowed to house permanent guests, but Benj kept himself hidden well. It was during this time period that he was acquainted with both Richie Rosenthal and Rob Strobel. It was not until months later that he got the opportunity to speak with Richie when neither of them were intoxicated.

In February, Benj found himself living in the basement of an Orthodox Jewish familyâs home. Annaâs drum set had accompanied Benj on his drive from Kearney. It sat with him in that familyâs basement along with his guitar and keyboard. Numerous unreleased songs were written during this time, along with much of the Blue Dirt / Red Carpet guitar, piano and percussion.

In May, Benj was kicked out of his basement dwelling and almost lived with Richie, but that situation didnât come through so he hid out at Annaâs dorm again instead. Anna is claustrophobic and likes things moderately clean. Benj can be messy. But we all do what we can, or say we do.
In July of 2006, Benj, Anna, and Rob Strobel moved into a brick building in midtown Omaha. For some strange reason, the landlord allowed Benj to sign on the lease, not taking notice to the fact that he was seventeen. The demo version of Blue Dirt / Red Carpet was recorded there during the summer and fall.

Sometime in Autumn of 2006, Benj called Richie up and asked him if he would like to play bass with him. In the parking lot of a local coffee shop, Richie and Benj sat in a car and listened to the songs that had already been arranged. Since then, Richie has been a solid member of Foreign Elfest. He is an excellent bassist, and an attractive young man.

Rob Strobel has been well-trained in Suzuki style violin and is a very talented musician. He had also been living with Anna and Benj for a couple of months, it was natural for him to complement Foreign Elfest with his strings (as well as organ for live situations.)

In December, Benj met Tony Bonacci at his day job, the Bread Oven. Tony is a musician in the band Hyannis and also an amazing photographer. While they were at the Bread Oven, Tony listened to a couple songs from the Blue Dirt / Red Carpet demo. Tony liked what he heard. From December until the end of January, the members of Foreign Elfest along with Tony, Micah Renner, and Joey Bonacci gathered within Franklin St. Studio and created Blue Dirt / Red Carpet. Blue Dirt / Red Carpet was released March 8th, 2007.

Foreign Elfest is:
Benj Hochfelder â Vocals, Guitars, Piano, Organ, Bass
Anna Schmidt â Drums, Vocals, Keys
Richie Rosenthal â Bass
Rob Strobel â Violin, Organ
Lauren Blakemore â Keys, Tambourine