Roomful of Teeth has long pushed boundaries on what a choir can do, using their mouthes, tongues, and throats for more than simply singing or humming. Singer/songwriter/composer Gabriel Kahane consistently ignores the boundaries between pop, theater, and concert music – if it contains tunes and can support lyrics, it’s on the table. Knowing these facts, it seems inevitable that these artists would come together on a project.
With cuts for each singer in ROT, Elevator Songs presents a cycle concerning the denizens of an unnamed hotel that defies all boundaries of space and time, allowing the stories to take place in the present, past, and future. Given the eclectic nature of the narratives, it makes sense that each track follows its own musical path. The moody “Sophomore Record” presents as a low-key pop song sung by Eliza Bagg and Martha Cluver in line with its title. The primarily spoken “Valise,” starring Jodie Landau, acts as a comedic pseudo-radio program from an imaginary travel influencer answering baggage questions. The gentle but intense “Not Even the Dead,” featuring Mingjia Chen, uses moody singer/songwriter pop to confront the mental health issues that have evolved into modern life’s most pressing pain. Sung by Thann Scoggin and Estelí Gomez, “The Hot Tub” tells its monologue about a strange and vulgar encounter as if it’s an operatic interlude. “Speaking in Tongues” and “All That is Solid” both feature Kahane himself on lead vocals; ironically, “Memory Burns,” the song that most sounds like something from his solo records, is sung by Gomez.
Though there are always signposts, neither of these artists have ever sounded much like anyone else. That gives this project a unique landscape, one which reveals new facets with every spin. With humor, poignancy, wit, and no small amount of expert craft, Elevator Songs is a remarkable piece of work.
