Elephant Stone

Based in Montreal around musician Rishi Dhir, Elephant Stone has since the late 2000s developed a psychedelic rock nourished by 60s pop, indie rock and influences from Indian classical music, with a central place given to the sitar in its arrangements. Formed after Dhir's departure from The High Dials, the band first drew attention with The Seven Seas in 2009, then continued along this path on Elephant Stone in 2013, The Three Poisons in 2014 and Ship of Fools in 2016, evolving its writing toward more melodic formats and denser production, without abandoning its hypnotic motifs or its taste for Orientalist textures. Elephant Stone's trajectory also includes links with the contemporary psych scene, notably through collaborations on ES3PRMX in 2015 and through Rishi Dhir's parallel activity within MIEN. With Hollow in 2020, then Back Into the Dream in 2024, Elephant Stone extends a body of work situated between repetitive groove, dream pop refrains, retro keyboards and flowing guitars, in a band formula that fuses rock efficiency and detailed arrangements.