“Oh, my love, this is the beginning..." Josh Johnson’s powerfully raw voice rings out in the opening line of Elenowen’s debut album Pulling Back the Veil (2010). Indeed, with the onset of a completely new branch of their lives, there is no denying the passion and sheer talent that Josh and Nicole Johnson have coalesced to create the refreshingly new duo, Elenowen.
The creation of music will always be special to Josh and Nicole, for it was what brought the two together when they were teenagers. Both pursued individual careers as performers for several years before finally combining their artistic efforts through Elenowen in 2009. When discussing how the couple began collaborating, Josh said, “I had some songs that I had written, and she had some songs that she had already written, but we never sat down together and said ‘Ok, let’s both collectively write a song’.”
Nowadays, the duo has been writing together exclusively, creating songs that showcase both Josh & Nicole’s talents more evenly. The self-proclaimed “ambient folk rock” duo takes their listeners through the journeys of everyday life and the many battles it brings—including marriage. “The first year of marriage had major ups and downs for us and gave us love and inspiration to write, and that’s just what the album ended up being about,” says Nicole.
After about a year of living from paycheck to paycheck working at the same local coffee shop, Josh and Nicole started pursuing their dream together by creating their debut album, Pulling Back the Veil. Released in January 2010, the album is a collection of eight original songs, written by Josh and Nicole, both individually and collectively, with the desire to paint a picture of the winding road they have been on for the past year.
Shortly after releasing their debut album, Elenowen teamed up with management company, Big Enterprises, in March 2010. With this major step, Elenowen has spent a lot of time recently strategically planning out the next steps for them to take on their musical journey, including the perfection of a more “duo-focused sound.” And with that, the pair has been busy creating music that will hopefully be conducive for television and film placements in the near future.
The music that Elenowen brings to life unites heavy, yet smooth, harmonies, ambient acoustics, and insightful lyrics to create a distinctive atmosphere that emerges as an honest breath of fresh air in a world of artificial drones. In an industry hungry for something new, raw, and beautiful, Elenowen distinguishes itself as an up and coming act that vulnerably refreshes the listener, with an effectual ability to move past the surface and into the heart.
