Starting off with gentle guitar strumming to then create a musical atmosphere that you will want to live in, ‘Where Were You’ by Elephant Moon has elements of folk and Americana which are beautifully blended.
The song feels like driving down a lonely road surrounded by trees on a rainy afternoon, with nostalgia for the past and a dream for the future colliding. The song features the layering of the lap steel guitar and acoustic guitar primarily, which sounds ethereal. The song has a slow, soft tempo that can push you to reflect on your own life and think of everything and everyone you gained and lost along the way.
The song starts with the lyrics “Where were you when we made plans / To stay up all night and do nothing but dance / In a big house full of sinners and saints” which makes you think of the people that got away. The song also touches on the essence of life with lyrics like “Tomorrow is a ticket we travel on / Got nothing but adventures in my pocket as I go on.” The introspective nature of the lyrics make the song poetic along with having cathartic musicality. The lap steel guitar’s sombre notes help in creating and holding up the reflective nature of the track.
There are some songs that make you want to dance, there are songs that make you want to cry. But there are also songs that make you pause and think, and leave you with a wistful smile and ‘Where Were You’ belongs in that territory.