Elizabeth Ghandour, aka ELOUR (pronounced "allure"), recently completed a month-long residency at the storied 331 Club in Northeast Minneapolis. Spotlighting a plethora of young, talented female-fronted bands, ELOUR showcased her Femme Rock debut album Blood Running, along with her definitive style and mojo throughout the entire month. ELOUR has been a strong, opinionated voice in the scene, not afraid to be honest, emotional, and leaning into breaking the stereotypes that surround fierce women. It’s her distinct voice that correlates directly into her music and fashion.
Elizabeth grew up in small town Madelia, Minnesota and while you’d think that means a lack of exposure to fashion, that wasn’t the case for her. Her mother had fun friends that were into shopping together as a group. She also received hand-me-downs that were actually top brands like Gibo, Guess, and Calvin Klein. So clothing was always in abundance for her to build confidence through experimenting with a lot of different outfits.
When Elizabeth moved to New York City, it was another level of exposure. She noticed there are no rules in New York as she would see everything on the subway, like people wearing matching whole jumpsuits with Nike tennis shoes, to the extreme opposites with mismatched patterns and colors. The kaleidoscope of fashion was stimulating to her brain seeing how the diversity of people would piece things together. She’d ride the subway and notice certain styles that would make her wonder about them as people and what the rest of their lives were about. As a musician, this was another outlet of storytelling and mental gymnastics in imagining their lives.
“My mom always had a really good sense of style and she loved to shop. I think it was her therapy, but we participated in it. We would have major shopping outings and she would pull together fun stuff for us and we’d try on all these different things. My dad, because my parents were divorced, didn’t know what to do with us when we’d come to visit. So he would take us shopping as well.”
-Elizabeth Ghandour
Elizabeth’s own style transformation is sewn together with her music. First emerging as a folk artist, everything landed in the realm of conservatively pretty. She had long hair, flowy sleeves and skirts, and definitely not angled as sexy. Writing folk and Americana music fit that dress code. She wanted to make it clear to people with the sound and present them a whole package that aligned together. When she shifted into the Femme Rock music, she wanted to be aggressive and flaunt her ability as a vocalist.
“I felt like I wanted to be loud, aggressive, very feminine, and I just didn’t feel like that genre (folk) allowed me to do those things. The dress change came after the music change. I was like, oh, actually now I can have fun. Age has probably made me more adventurous with wearing whatever I want,” shares Elizabeth.
Elizabeth has also noticed that thrifting has changed over time. She used to shop at the Buffalo Exchange in Uptown, but it’s gotten a lot more expensive. Thrifting there used to be the only place you could find odd items and the weirdest combinations. You could fulfill different desires while taking risks on clothes in an affordable way. The rise of popularity in thrifting has pushed prices up while being seen as being environmentally conscious. So for many people that were more daring and found thrift stores to be the only resource, it feels like the average person is now there.
ELOUR has forged its own path in Femme Rock and intentionality with songwriting. Although there are similarities to a variety of female fronted bands, ELOUR admits that she doesn’t have major icons that consistently influence her, instead having phases where she’s more attuned to specific music. This has led to her forging her own sense of sound without trying to appease a certain influence or genre. She's never tried to emulate a style or something another artist has developed to fit what they are doing.
Where she does find a more solid connection is listening to artists talk about their struggles and how they got through it. That gives her a sense of belonging and relatability, giving purpose to what she’s trying to do in her own music. She recently heard Cher on NPR talking about her holiday album. Cher shared her experiences and how she considered herself a bit silly and kind of neurotic, even not liking her own voice. It’s those types of conversations that make Elizabeth want to listen to the artist more.
Hearing the struggles of other artists helps in her own challenges. She finally has a debut album that holds a lot of time and intention in its messaging. It’s cohesive to her look and songwriting. But without having immediate financial and popularity success, she admits there’s a grind and difficulty to keep playing gigs. Especially when she can’t just show up in jeans and t-shirt. ELOUR is a complete look and full package, requiring effort in every show, no matter the size. Playing gigs can also be demoralizing with having to haul your gear everywhere, arrive early for sound check, buy food, and at the end of the night lose money if it’s not supported or promoted well. ELOUR is ready to play larger shows, go on tour, and be recognized for an album she’s extremely proud of. There’s an expectation that comes with that pride in getting paid fairly as an artist.
“I feel like my look fits my sound and the energy I’m trying to put out. I can’t say I obsess about anybody. I have never been one to get really heavily into trying to imitate. I’m not a very good imitator. That’s why I don’t like to do a lot of covers.”
-Elizabeth Ghandour
The mojo that ELOUR exudes is instantly felt. She’s gotten some pieces from Dancewear Solutions, purchased when she was a backup singer for the Slippery People, a Talking Head cover band. They had to do identical outfits, which led to finding professional dance outfits and sequins. ELOUR has repurposed those pieces into her style, as seen with the black sequined one-sleeve piece. Looping around the neck and falling on her right shoulder, it has a Michael Jackson vibe and is a very eye-catching unique piece. You can spot it in the album cover photo.
She doesn’t remember where the black leotard came from, but she’s had it forever. The sheer fabric adding that extra edge and femininity into the piece. The stretchy blue pants came from a clothing swap recently with a family trip to Utah. She randomly went to her cousin’s and left with a suitcase of clothes she didn’t even try on. The shimmery high boots came from Rewind in Northeast and although she’s had them forever, had never found the right outfit to wear them for.
The classic real fur coat and earrings came from her mother’s friend Gail, who was actually her second grade teacher. Gail brings over weird clothing pieces all the time to hand down to Elizabeth. Some find their way onto stage. Although not much of a jewelry person, ELOUR rocks a long dangling earring that completes the outfit.
ELOUR’s fashion is a vibrant expression of her music, encapsulating her unique style in every garment she dons. Known for her daring approach to fashion, ELOUR effortlessly blends bold colors and unconventional textures. Her fashion choices reflect her attitude and no nonsense approach in her music. From the skintight stretchy pants to revealing necklines, ELOUR’s pushes the same buttons with her clothing as in her music. She points out that women try to keep emotions in check for fear of being called crazy, hysterical, or aggressive, while men seem to get away with anything without being ostracized. ELOUR leans into those labels and has strength in showing emotions and being aggressive, all meant to break that patriarchy. Her fashion is meant to push social norms on how women should present themselves.
There is no better example than the music video for “Ha”. The symbolism of the chains strung around the wrists of ELOUR tie into the theme of a song that expresses anger and hurt she felt after a breakup. She felt unseen in her pain and struggle. ELOUR shares that females are often dismissed or go unacknowledged in so many valuable roles in a society still run by men. The chains represent that feeling of being powerless. As the video climaxes into panting ‘ha’s’ and sizzles out, we see at the end of those chains were men. She turns around that role with her letting go of the chains and taking charge.
Witnessing her performance at the 331 is the implementation of that message. Her clothes allow her to be physical and move, while musically, shaking the ears of the audience with distress and an emotional frenzy of empowering songs. It works together, hand in hand-me-downs, to deliver a distinct and unified mojo. Having witnessed her perform in the past, there’s a new level of polish and potency in her music now.
“I don’t see enough awesome female leads that are like, I am being badass and saying some crazy stuff you’re not supposed to say. Maybe my demographic is more women in their 30’s and they are not going out because they have kids and jobs. And if they go out, they’re going to buy some nice tickets to Maggie Rogers. I don't think that people in my age group are getting really looked at because the people that have money are paying to go to the big shows rather than support local.”
-ELOUR
When you have such a distinct look and appearance, sometimes the hardest part is that first impression. ELOUR has played shows where people are drinking coffee and get up to leave because it’s too loud or aggressive. Her first instinct is to feel bad and want to change, or maybe singing quieter or softer. But she then holds strong and honors the music and objective of her own personal voice. She’s not going to gear it towards anyone else because it doesn’t matter what they think, the music is what it is. It’s that perseverance that makes ELOUR an important voice in our community and why her art stands tall. With its melodic compositions and heartfelt lyrics, ELOUR has the incredible ability to transport listeners into their own struggles with the system. It serves as a reminder that even in the darkest of times, there is always power in the middle finger.
“If these two old women think it’s loud, well, I’m sorry that I was booked here. You could have seen a flyer maybe. I have to be careful not to apologize and just to say we are what we are.”
Check out the links below for ways to follow ELOUR and all the topics we mentioned above.
ELOUR website - Instagram - YouTube - Dancewear Solutions - Rewind Thrift
