Elder Island – Hello Baby Okay
Bristol trio Elder Island announce their third studio album Hello Baby Okay and drop new single ‘Pink Lemon’.
The follow up to their critically acclaimed 2021 LP Swimming Static, the album builds on an already acclaimed catalogue as the band enter a new chapter.
The second single from Hello Baby Okay, ‘Pink Lemon’ underscores why Elder Island remain one of the UK’s most distinctive live acts. Embracing a reaffirmed approach to crafting music that’s as uplifting as it is emotionally resonant, the track channels sun-drenched soul pop with echoes of early Blood Orange and Phoenix. Built around warm guitars, classic 90s filters and Katy Sargent’s unmistakable vocal, ‘Pink Lemon’ is expansive and groove led; balancing dancefloor momentum with hazy, retro tinged nostalgia. Immediate and playful, it’s designed to move bodies as much as moods.
Elder Island say:
“‘Pink Lemon’ is about escaping monotony and dreaming of being whisked away from the everyday. We wanted it to sound like old analogue holiday photographs, with a sun glare on the image, the light and warmth of golden moments. We used classic 90s filters (famously used by Daft Punk), like the Mutronic Mutator and the Electrix Filter Factory, to bring in a slight vintage character, but kept the focus on letting the bright, silky guitar riff shine for that sunny, soul-pop feel”.
“Along with this second single, it’s our great pleasure to announce a full album. It feels like a fresh start for us. We took time to step out of the music industry’s ceaseless grind to produce this one. A body of work that could echo the playful, relaxed attitude we took in making it. We wanted the joy to shine through”.
Influenced by Martin Parr’s domestic interiors and the deadpan stillness of Wes Anderson and Jared Hess, the single’s video places Elder Island inside a pastel-tinted world of routine that gradually slips into dreamlike escapism. Inspired by the lyrics, director Anton Larkin imagined the band caught in hypnotic housework and everyday rituals before the mood transforms in a glowing laundrette sequence where movement and colour finally break through. “It’s about boredom and escapism – that quiet urge to break free when life becomes dull”, says Larkin, as the film shifts from numb realism into a soft-focus pink dream world.
‘Pink Lemon’ follows last year’s lead release ‘Ordinary Love’ (supported by Pete Tong) and signals Elder Island’s evolving sound, shaped as much by the dancefloor as by their indie roots. While the band are long celebrated for their immersive, brooding electronica, the new single embraces a more open, liberated energy, rooted in groove, melody and a renewed sense of play.
Forthcoming album Hello Baby Okay marks a conscious reframing of the trio’s creative process. Where Swimming Static was meticulously layered and studio focused, the new record emerged from free flowing jam sessions, reconnecting the band with spontaneity and a desire to capture the kinetic energy of their live performances on record. The result is a record rooted in 90s club culture, threaded with lilting funk pop guitars and driving rhythms, unfolding across ten tracks via hook-laden choruses and anchored by hypnotic vocals, where hedonism and devotion coexist.
With the announcement of Hello Baby Okay and the release of ‘Pink Lemon’, Elder Island enter a renewed creative chapter defined by openness, instinct and a deep connection to the dancefloor.
To mark the album announcement, Elder Island will play two intimate shows at Bristol’s Strange Brew (25 March) and London’s Oslo (26 March), offering fans an exclusive first listen to tracks from the record.
#elderisland