Spencer Cullum, Rich Ruth and Sean Thompson have proven themselves adept as both side players and frontmen over the past decade and change. The laundry list of their credits includes work with Miranda Lambert, S.G. Goodman and Margo Price, plus a healthy slate of solo efforts and collaborative projects. Released in September, Shrunken Elvis is their debut as a trio, and while there are the kind of connections you might expect to their other work, the self-titled instrumental LP occupies its own world.
One thing that sets Shrunken Elvis apart is that lots of the sounds here are from guitars, though the texture and structure of the music includes lots of electronic percussion and synths. Cullum made it a point to keep the instrument he’s best known for, the pedal steel, to a minimum on his Spencer Cullum’s Coin Collection records. But as he does when he plays live with Ruth’s band, he primarily plays steel in Shrunken Elvis.
The pieces feel contemplative and exploratory without ever sounding like the players get lost, and they’re kinetic without feeling frenetic. With its marimba-esque loops and playful melodic runs, “Sun Pillar” reminds me of the music Police drummer Stewart Copeland wrote for the ’90s PlayStation classic Spyro the Dragon. There are a couple moments that make me think of favorite bits from Brian Eno’s Another Green World — “Marina Pt. 2” has a wild solo with a sound like Robert Fripp’s “Wimshurst guitar” on “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “Mu Receptors” has a lovely rich, wistful harmonic texture like “The Big Ship.”
While making a nerd like myself grin and go “Aha!” is nice, there’s a more important takeaway. Three very talented longtime friends made the time to flesh out their ideas and listen to what each other brought to the table, and the result is cohesive and unique. Find the record on Bandcamp or your favorite streaming service, and keep up with Shrunken Elvis on Instagram for more.
