Los Angeles-based Elf Freedom is a fascinating psychedelic band that released an excellent record, Solstice, in October. Solstice contains five (mostly) long improvised tracks recorded live in the Elf Freedom studio space in L.A. in June 2023, with additional overdubs and mixing sessions.
True to its name, Elf Freedom offers a transcendent and mystical experience through sound, with (as they say) “all songs channeled from the Elf Dimension.” While the group started as a duo with Nora Keyes and Bee Appleseed, Elf Freedom has since evolved into more of a psych collective.
After reviewing Solstice a few months ago, (read here) The Third Eye contacted Bee of Elf Freedom and emailed the group questions. Vocalist Nora Keyes was kind enough to answer our queries and tell us more about the band.
Check out our interview with Nora from Elf Freedom below. She talks about their new record, the band’s favorite music hangout in Los Angeles, their healing experience with sound-bath performances, and much more.
Interview with Elf Freedom
Third Eye: Can you introduce yourselves and the band?
Nora Keyes: I’m Nora Keyes. Bee Appleseed is my partner. We started the band as a duo in 2018. Bee plays rhythm guitar, midi harmonica, dub siren, and sings backing vocals, Mirage, who collaborated with us on the production/sound of Solstice, plays lead guitar, Paul Kaufman plays rub board & experimental harmonica, and Jaqi Ryder plays drums on Solstice.
Since this release we have added Tonya Lee Jaynes on drums, Jaqi Ryder is currently playing percussion, Lord Blobbie on Synth, and Noel Rhodes of Unusual Tuesdays on bass. We also have been playing with the very talented Andy Alt, David Amaya, and Scott Bassman as guest musicians on performances & recordings.
Third Eye: Your bio is interesting in how you remark on using elves as an archetype for the human/nature spirit that exists worldwide. What made you connect with the elf archetype and choose that as such a prominent theme?
Nora: We chose the elf archetype because it essentially represents a person that lives in nature and is in balance with it. The concept of Elf Freedom is referring to a state of consciousness we wish to convey with our music – one that allows a person to feel free of the worry and anticipation that consumes many people living in modern society by creating a present moment awareness, a feeling of being connected to source energy/nature.
Third Eye: You have a prolific music catalog available, but maybe you can tell us more about the latest, Solstice. What did you try to accomplish with this latest work, and how did it fit into your larger body of work?
Nora: This album is our most realized release so far – it is the culmination of the collaboration between Bee, myself, Rocco (Mirage), Jaqi Ryder, and Paul Kaufman. We tried to accomplish music that hypnotizes with its presence while creating a journey through different expressed emotional energies.
When I listen to it, now that I have some space from the creation phase of the work, it gives me the feeling of a waking dream. The pieces immerse the listener and transport them to their elaborate soundscapes, the dance between instruments and vocals make every moment of the music a decorated second that expands & condenses time.
Our other albums available online are live performances from shows. Albums, such as Capricorn Xeenia and Essential Invisible contain post production vocal overdubs but were not as worked on as intensely as Solstice. Capricorn Xeenia is our first concert with Mirage on guitar.
Third Eye: Elf Freedom is based in Los Angeles, which has a long history as an excellent music scene. What is the scene in L.A. like now, especially for psychedelic music and rock?
Nora: We generally hang around the Unusual Tuesdays scene that our bass player Noel Rhodes hosts. Noel creates giant masks from paper mache and performs songs & vignettes between acts. Dogs are welcome. It’s an absurdist psychedelic cabaret – my favorite club in the world.
The artists that perform at UT are very talented and warm. Bee, Mirage, Tonya, and Blobbie of Elf Freedom are in the house band. It’s one of the most supportive artistic scenes I’ve ever been a part of. Events with them always leave me feeling recharged.
Third Eye: I’m interested in your sound bath performances, where the audience lies on the floor. What are these performances like, and how do you approach them differently from your louder, rock-based shows?
Nora: I began my practice with sound healing in 2011 as a means of healing myself after I experienced trauma from my father’s complicated passing. I would feel a lot of emotional pain and would play simple drone music while directing my vocals to the tensions I felt in my heart & stomach. I had a lot of success making myself feel immensely better after sessions.
From there, I developed a sound healing practice that entails people lying on the floor and letting themselves be relaxed and transformed consciously by the music. Personally, I feel the louder rock shows also have a sound healing effect, as the energy directed and the motivations behind the music are similar.
The sound bath is obviously more gentle in approach and is meant to deeply relax while the rock show is to invigorate. Both contain the ability to inspire & relieve the listener of emotional strains. I don’t believe sound healing is a heal all modality for troubling heavy states of consciousness but I do believe it creates a lighthouse for the listener to experience different states of consciousness that they are capable of producing themselves.
After sound healings & Elf Freedom shows the number one thing audience members say to me is that they felt inspired and their own sense of creativity was activated. I believe the neurochemicals created in imaginative states are magical healing elixirs as they contain the capacity to expand the mind out of oppressive perspectives into inspired states where transformation is possible.
Third Eye: Last question: What are some short and long-term goals for Elf Freedom? Where would you like to see the band go next?
Nora: Currently we are scoring silent films which has allowed us to play for more focused audiences and for longer periods of time. The scoring has prompted so many interesting synchronicities between our music & the visuals. We are learning so much about storytelling through music.
Our short-term goals entail scoring Metropolis (1927) by Fritz Lang in color & The Adventure of Prince Achmed (1926) by Lotte Reinger in March. Our long-term goals are to create immersive experiences with light & film installations in auditoriums/concert halls/amphitheaters where people are immersed by the music & visuals. Additionally, Bee has a dream of doing a sort of “Live At Pompeii” style concert on Easter Island.
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