The Besnard Lakes
The Besnard Lakes Are The Last Of The Great Thunderstorm Warnings
Flemish Eye/FatCat/Full Time Hobby
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On their sixth album, The Besnard Lakes Are The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings, Montrealβs The Besnard Lakes demonstrates its studio chops and musicianship in equal sums. TBLATLOTGTW is modern rock woven together by psychedelic, progressive, and classic rock, and at 72 minutes, it flows effortlessly from beginning to end.
Introducing the story, a glittering hum of churning keyboards and droopy guitar strums part the prairie fog mists of βBlackstrapβ Mountain. Gentle voices are βwaiting on this tower to call herβ, and ground control wryly rigged two buttons from an old telephone through a couple guitar amps. The earth calls back via Jace Lasekβs spacey vocals in βRaindrops,β its plaintive, bass lead progression culminating in an angelic, harmonized Olga Goreas vocal epiphany. With densely-packed swells of indeterminate instrumental origin, no percussion, and whacked-out falsetto cloudbursting, the challenging βChristmas Can Waitβ exposes the albumβs lack of coherent lyrical signposts. What are they are going on about?
The need to know becomes dichotomous on album apex βOur Heads, Our Hearts On Fire Again.β It almost doesnβt matter; the 3/4 waltz and uplifting, celestial harmonies trigger catharsis anywayβsuch a gift. βNew Revolutionβ returns to traditional rock rhythmic territory, if that also involves contrapuntal bass leads and gospel-like choral passages. We finally get our narrative clarity when βThe Father Of Time Wakes Upβ and enunciates, βWith love there is no deathβ, followed by a cosmic guitar solo that at last draws the line connecting Boston (the band) to Prince.
Every track is generous, beautiful, and essential. If you use music as medicine, this record will give you what you need. If you want to be overtaken, transported, and delivered safely back home, TBLATLOTGTW is yours.
Artist Links
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE BESNARD LAKES – THE BESNARD LAKES ARE THE LAST OF THE GREAT THUNDERSTORM WARNINGS
Charles T. Stokes