Elephant Stone is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

band. Fronted by Rishi Dhir, the band incorporates aspects of traditional

Indian music Owing to India's vastness and diversity, Indian music encompasses numerous genres in multiple varieties and forms which include classical music, folk, rock, and pop. It has a history spanning several millennia and developed over several ...

including the

sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form in 19th-century India. Khusrau K ...

tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

, and

dilruba The dilruba (also spelled dilrupa) is a bowed musical instrument originating in India. It is a type of Bowed Sitar that's slightly larger than an esraj and has a larger, square resonance box like a sarangi. The dilruba holds particular importa ...

with Western

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

.. ''

Chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphics, graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can repres ...

'', June 3, 2009.

History

Dhir formed Elephant Stone in 2009 after he left

The High Dials The High Dials are a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The band started out playing a brand of pop music strongly influenced by 1960s Great Britain, British Mod (subculture), mod styles, but their sound has broadened to inc ...

. The band combined

Indian classical music Indian classical music is the art music, classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It is generally described using terms like ''Shastriya Sangeet'' and ''Marg Sangeet''. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as ...

and instrumentation with

1960s pop This article includes an overview of the events and trends in popular music in the 1960s. In North America and Europe the decade was particularly revolutionary in terms of popular music, continuing the shift away from traditional pop that began ...

and rock."Elephant Stone and the Enduring Mystique of Rock Sitar"
''Rawkus Magazine'', March 6, 2017. by Wanda Waterman The band's debut album, ''The Seven Seas'', was released June 2, 2009 on Dhir's own Elephants on Parade label, with distribution by

Fontana North Fontana North is a Canadian record distribution company and represents the Canadian wing of Fontana Distribution. It is a joint venture between Canadian-based Cadence Music Group and US-based Fontana Distribution. The company was established by ...

. The album was a longlisted nominee for the

2009 Polaris Music Prize The 2009 edition of the Canada, Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on September 21, 2009 in Toronto

on June 15, 2009."CBC Radio3 Announces Polaris Prize Longlist"

CBC Radio 3 CBC Radio 3 is a Canadian digital radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, which plays a relatively freeform mix of indie rock, indie pop, alternative hip hop, folk, country and electronic music. The service, which la ...

, June 15, 2009. On July 4, 2009 ''The Seven Seas'' was released on Irish label Indiecater Records. On February 12, 2013, their self-titled second album was released on Reverberation Appreciation Society. The band's third full-length album, ''The Three Poisons'', was released in 2014. In 2015,

Burger Records Burger Records was an American independent record label and record store in Fullerton, California, United States. The label was founded in 2007 by Sean Bohrman and Lee Rickard, members of the power pop band Thee Makeout Party. The record/vide ...

released a cassette featuring a remixed version of ''The Three Poisons'' titled ''ES3PRMX''. The cassette features collaborations with

Anton Newcombe Anton Alfred Newcombe (born August 29, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and founder of the music group The Brian Jonestown Massacre. Newcombe was the subject of the 2004 documentary film '' Dig!'', alo ...

The Brian Jonestown Massacre The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American Rock music, rock band led and started by Anton Newcombe. It was formed in San Francisco in 1990. The group was the subject of the 2004 documentary film called ''Dig!'', and have gained media notorie ...

, Fabien Leseure, Tom Furse of

The Horrors The Horrors are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Southend-on-Sea in 2005 by lead vocalist Faris Badwan, guitarist Joshua Hayward, keyboardist and synthesizer player Tom Furse, bassist Rhys Webb, and drummer and percussionist Joe Spurg ...

, Al Lover, Alex Maas of The Black Angels, Peter Holmstrom of

The Dandy Warhols The Dandy Warhols are an American psychedelic rock, psychedelic/ band, formed in Portland, Oregon, Portland, Oregon, in 1994 by singer-guitarist Courtney Taylor-Taylor and guitarist Peter Holmström. They were later joined by keyboardist Zia Mc ...

and JM Lapham of

The Earlies The Earlies are a band formed by Christian Madden and Giles Hatton from Lancashire, England, and Brandon Carr and John Mark Lapham from the United States. They are notable for blending elements from a wide range of musical genres and have been ...

. In 2016 Elephant Stone released their fourth album, ''Ship of Fools''. In 2017 they released an EP, ''Live at the Verge'', and set out on a tour of Europe. Elephant Stone released their fifth album, ''Hollow'', on February 14, 2020.

Discography

Albums

* ''The Seven Seas'' (2009) * ''Elephant Stone'' (2013) * ''The Three Poisons'' (2014) * ''Ship of Fools'' (2016) * ''Hollow'' (2020) * ''Back Into the Dream'' (2024) *
Back Into the Garage: The Back Into the Dream Demos
' (2025)

EPs and singles

* ''The Glass Box EP 12"'' (2010) - mini album * ''Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin b/w Strangers 7"'' (2012) * ''American Dream'' (2020) * ''Le voyage de M. Lonely dans la lune'' (2022) * ''Elephant Stone presents "Hollow"'' (2022) * ''Dawn, Day, Dusk'' (2023)

Remixes

* ''ES3PRMX'' (2015) - Remix of ''The Three Poisons'', cassette * ''Remix of Fools'' (2017) - Remix of ''Ship of Fools'' * ''GLIDExTDSESRMXv1.1'' (2017)- Remix of ''Glide'' (

The Dream Syndicate The Dream Syndicate is an American alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1981 to 1989, and reunited since 2012. The band is associated with neo-psychedelia and the Paisley Underground music movement; of the b ...

)

Other appearances

* "

Christmas Time (Is Here Again) "Christmas Time (Is Here Again)" is a Christmas song by the English rock band the Beatles, originally recorded for their fifth fan club Christmas record, '' Christmas Time Is Here Again!'' (1967). One of the few Beatles songs credited to all fo ...

" (

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

cover) on ''Psych-Out Christmas'' (2013) * " L.A. Woman" on ''A Psych Tribute to the Doors'' (2014)

Awards and nominations

, - , 2022 , ''Le voyage de M. Lonely dans la lune'' , GAMIQ - Rock EP of the Year , Winner , - , 2009 , '' The Seven Seas'' ,

Polaris Music Prize The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize. The prize was inc ...

- Album of the Year , Long-Listed

Personnel

Current band members

* Rishi Dhir –

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

* Miles Dupire-Gagnon –

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

* Robbie MacArthur –

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

* Jason Kent –

keys Key, Keys, The Key or The Keys may refer to: Common uses * Key (cryptography), a piece of information needed to encode or decode a message * Key (instrument), a component of a musical instrument * Key (lock), a device used to operate a lock * ...

Past band members

* Bobby Fraser –

* Jean-Gabriel Lambert –

* Chris McCarron –

* Mike O'Brien –

* Jules Pampena –

* Greg Paquette –

* Robb Surridge –

* Richard White –

* Chris Wise –

* Stephen "The Venk" Venkatarangam –

References

External links

Elephant StoneIndiecater Records

The Reverberation Appreciation Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elephant Stone Musical groups established in 2008 Canadian indie rock groups Musical groups from Montreal English-language musical groups from Quebec 2008 establishments in Quebec Canadian psychedelic rock music groups Desi musicians Indo-Canadian culture