Elizabeth & the Catapult

I'm surprised I'm having such a hard time with this one. I guess because while I'm thoroughly enjoying what I've heard, I've still only been through a couple listens on most of the songs and there's not much material for me to work with. But that's part of the excitement.

Elizabeth & the Catapult have only put out a 6-song EP so far. Listening to them is like beta-testing. The mp3's aren't even available on iTunes right now (they ARE on amazon.com though, I would suggest it, I mean you can pick up the whole collection for a shade over $5)

Their bio states that frontwoman Elizabeth Ziman found inspiration in the classics (particularly Debussy and Bach) sprinkled on some Beatles flavor and mixed it all together in her own style and came up with a unique sound. The Beatles influence is apparent to me in "Momma's Boy" which is arguably the most original and infectious track of the six. Not only does it sound like what would result if Eleanor Rigby and Rocky Raccoon had a baby with a sweet and mellow voice, yet tinged with a sarcastic attitude. But also this and several other songs of theirs feel like they should be accompanied by kaleidoscope patterns and 'Yellow Submarine'-like drawings.

"Waiting For the Kill" sneaks up on you, the slower, dreamier songs seem to be well-placed within the CD, "Devil's Calling" screams at you and calls you out, but it's OK because the EP is resolved with "Golden Ink" which lullabyes the whole experience out and feels oddly hopeful even juxtaposed against rather desperate lyrics.

I'm really surprised this group has been around as long as they have. If nothing else, "Momma's Boy" is a gold-mine. And if it's not well-known because they didn't want to sell their songs to the fastest "Grey's Anatomy/The OC" knock-off to get to them, then more power to 'em! But I have a feeling they're about to get big...

At least bigger than a mere 2,000 listeners on last.fm!