Elastic is the Winspear label debut of
Amy O, the namesake of songwriter Amy Oelsner. Having started recording songs in D.I.Y. fashion in the 2000s as a teenager, she expanded from solo voice and ukulele to a full, plugged-in band by the time of its 2016 predecessor, Arrow. Recorded in her adopted base of Bloomington, Indiana, that album was mastered by
Mike Bridavsky, an area musician and studio jack-of-all-trades (and owner of Internet cat/recording artist Lil BUB). A year later, for
Elastic, Oelsner enlisted
Bridavsky to produce, and brought along a band, including a keyboardist. Lyrics and guitars take center stage, though, on a set of thoughtful but punchy indie rock that kicks off with the '60s psych rock-channeling "Lavender Night." Inspired by a health scare and "learning how to follow trails of light" ("Another bullet dodged for now/Back to the realm of stereo"), it streaks by in less than two minutes. Though it's one of the brisker tempos on the album, it's typical in that there are only a couple of songs that cross the three-minute mark here. One of them, the galloping "Cherry Blossom," is a sister song of sorts in terms of its psychedelic sound. Much more evocative of '90s
Weezer are songs including the title track, with singalong backing vocals and steadily paced hooks. More low-key entries, like closers "David" and "Spinning," still have an optimistic tone and summery hue. Throughout, the engaging melodies, reliable hooks, and warm, even-tempered vocals would win friends easily; its simmering energy pushes the album over the line into crush-worthy. [
Elastic was also released on LP.] ~ Marcy Donelson