When you give it some real thought, you realise that the word ‘slip’ is one of the best in the English language. Many words mean more than one thing but a ‘slip’ could be a mistake, a piece of paper or a fall. If I was in danger I might abscond to a dock (or slip away to a slip). You don’t need to think about cricket fielding positions or female undergarments to know that this is a versatile word.

And on the evidence contained within this track, New Yorker, Elliot Moss, is a versatile musician. Last year, he released his album, Highspeeds, to a degree of critical acclaim. It’s this track, Slip, recently added to Soundcloud, that has grabbed my attention though.

A vocodered voice spills out of multiple lips. There’s a mighty contrast at play here. The idea that letting things slip can be both positive and negative never seems far from the surface of the song. In one simple verse, Elliot asks where the pain, hurt and light he once knew have gone. This is a tune that’s both dark and light, sinister and joyful, laidback and layered.

Elliot is just 20 years old. His press release suggests that his versatility derives from his upbringing.

“His mother, an artist, rearranged the living room furniture into an assembly line of sorts, blanketed in drying mosaic tiles and soldered-together trinkets. A young Elliot surveyed piles of abandoned gear entombed in the basement of his dad’s recording studio. He would rescue and repair lost treasures to put to use in his own music; among them his first guitar – a worn Silvertone 1448 which he still plays.”

This week slips away. The weekend begins. Born slippy. 

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