ELLIOTT BROOD - "ROSE CITY"

There's a little city at the end of the road Where the Detroit river and the whiskey flows Now she ain't pretty but to me she's gold And she's always gonna be my home

Home: a subject that Elliott BROOD often write about (“The Valley Town”, “Only At Home”, “Stay Out”). Whether they’re going back to it, longing for it or don’t want to return, home wears many different hats in their folkloric tales. On “Rose City”, Elliott BROOD doff their caps to their hometown, and remind us that all it takes is a few old friends with a handful of stories — and the right soundtrack - to have a good time.

Cicadas hummin' and the corn grows high I know just what I wanna do tonight

There are many Rose Cities in the world, from Michigan to Texas, and Toulouse, France to Petra, Jordan, but to Elliott BROOD, no place smells as sweet as Windsor, ON. Named “Rose City” in the early 1900s, for most of the century, the city cultivated and cared for these emblematic flowers. Emblazoned on shirts and kick drums, the rose is also a common symbol in country music, a representation of romance and renewal, heartbreak and healing. Full of fun, twang and slang, “Rose City” is both a place and a feeling, a sentiment and a sound that fuels front stoop meanderings and nostalgic backyard parties.

Sippin that rye, talkin' bout the times I won't be home until the mornin' light

In full bloom, “Rose City” abounds with the same certainty as a local travelling the county roads without a map. It’s the song that kicks off the evening shift on your local radio station, the melody getting stuck in your head as you set off for a night out. It’s also one of the few songs in the band’s repertoire where the voices of all three members can be heard, reinforcing the idea that everybody is welcome in “Rose City”. While Elliott BROOD’s sound has shifted from their earlier days of punk rhythms and stompy doomgrass towards a warmer, motoric southern rock feel, “Rose City” is still as familiar as the jukebox favourite in the old tavern. As the band lean into this sound, free from any reservation about their roots, or future, a chorus of warm, down-home guitars and a step-to beat lead us to the best seat in the house. “Rose City” plays into the old saying, “home is where the heart is”, and it’s clear that Elliott BROOD will always love to come back to where it all started.

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