Single Of The Day: What A Time To Be Alive by The Elms

Album Art of The Elms's What A Time To Be Alive single - A photo of four middle-aged men in a black room, which soft blue lighting illuminating them from the right side of the frame. They all have at least stubble on their face or full beards. Three are looking at the camera, while one is looking down and off to the right. In the bottom right quarter, it has the band's name printed in white with the album title in a dark blue spread over two lines below it.

The Elms are one of my all-time favorite bands. They just create timeless rock 'n' roll that champions the life and grit of everyday Americans like themselves. In 2010, they announced they were retiring from being a band full-time after a full 10 years doing so. In 2015, they reunited for 2 nights only in Indianapolis, Indiana, and they are doing it again this fall. Released this past Friday, it's my first ever Single Of The Day (a much shorter version of my regular Album Of The Day series) and the first new studio recording from The Elms is over 15 years. "What A Time To Be Alive" finds the band back at it without missing a beat, with excellent guitars, bass and drums and great vocals. Fans of the band might be surprised by the band wearing their politics a bit more on their sleeve than in the past, but I think it's accurate and apropos for them to have a character say, "What the hell, man? Times are wild," because it's true. The song is not epic like "Speaking In Tongues" or "The Towers & The Trains" and it's not my favorite song of theirs, but it's still fun to hear new music from artists who have been doing other things for years. I'm looking forward to seeing them live again this fall!

Release Year: 2025
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Categories: 
Album Of The Day
Music

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