Sometimes a band comes along that is so contradictory in its style that it leaves one incredulous. Vortex Park is a group full of lush, complex, sounds. Sometimes funky, often beautiful, and stacked with realism, with enough lyrical wit and rhythm to take them anywhere, Vortex Park could take themselves as seriously as they wanted.
But then they wouldn’t be Vortex Park.
Many bands say they make music for the fun of it, but most still have their eye on a prize which would propel them quickly from the local womb from which they originated. However, the communal undertone of the Atlanta music scene is not lost on a band that accepts tips on their website, bundles albums and tickets together, and has a list of every person that has contributed to the success of their full-length LP, Follow the Elephant.
A band made up of talent that drifts like dust from group to group, Vortex Park may be elusive but once heard inescapable. Dizzying fiddle care of Rurik Nunan, a man that has obviously been doing this for twenty years (he has- just ask him) and a holy trinity rhythm section featuring Justin Roberts on double bass, Brad Scott on percussion and Noel Felty on drums provide the foundation for sexy, danceable tracks, radio-ready if not for perhaps their inability to be categorized.
But while record store goons are busy trying to pick a spot to stick them, front man Alex Wolf is laying down intelligent lines that take two or three listens to digest, like a nervous man at a bar spitting come-ons too fast for his prey. The contrast of Wolf's utterly real, soft-then raspy vocals (and just enough guitar to vamp up the rock factor) with the sweet-heat of gypsy-hippy funk endears Vortex Park to the listener the first time through. There is something for everyone here; the song Can’t Deny comes off as a sneaky little seduction, while the title track Follow the Elephant speaks emotional volumes as a battle cry for the disenchanted.
For those that have grown tired of the cookie-cutter and still appreciate heart-felt lyrics worn on the sleeve, Vortex Park holds a glimmer of hope- even if it is as fleeting as their performances.
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