Author: Michael

Posted in Album Reviews

The Besnard Lakes – Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO (2013)

Posted on by Michael

41bha7KCboL__AA160_The Besnard Lakes are a cross-Canada success story. In 2000 the husband/wife combo of Jace Lasek and Olga Goreas met in Vancouver, moved to Regina, before finally settling in Montreal. Lasek runs Breakglass Studios in Montreal which allows him and Goreas to start working on material in the studio before guitarist Richard White and drummer Kevin Laing enter to help flesh out the songs. Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO is the band’s fourth album and third with Jagjaguwar Records.

The dreamy vocals and swirling guitars of “46 Satires” sets the tone immediately, recalling both the early 90s shoegazer scene as well as the prog rock of the early 70s. “People of the Sticks” is a love story of finding your kindred soul mate but it can go virtually unnoticed behind Laing’s driving beat and the band’s harder edged guitar sound. Lasek’s falsetto vocals add a bit of Beach Boys flair to both the atmospheric “The Specter” and the mesmerizing “Colour Yr Lights In”.

All of the tracks on Until in Excess… clock in at well over five minutes but never meander into sluggish jam band interludes, melody is always the main focus. It’s an amazing ability that The Besnard Lakes can sit just as easily on a shelf beside your dad’s 60s psychedelic albums as they do the latest My Bloody Valentine. You can hear for yourself when the band plays the Park Theatre on June 18th.

7.5/10

Review also found at UMFM.com

Posted in Album Reviews

Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Mosquito (2013)

Posted on by Michael

61U3D+Z-LzL__AA160_After forming in 2000; Karen O, Nick Zinner, and Brian Chase of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs shot out of the gate in 2001 with their self-titled EP. Just under two years later they delivered their signature track “Maps”, which to this day still forms lumps in the throats of the skinny jeans contingent whenever it is played. While “Maps” continues to be their most enduring song, the band has continued to evolve. The art punk of their early years gave way to the addition of electronic flourishes on 2009’s It’s Blitz. YYYs are back with their fourth album, Mosquito, once again produced by Nick Launay and TV on the Radio’s Dave Sitek.

Within the first few tracks of Mosquito, it is clear that the more polished sound of It’s Blitz is not the road the band has taken. The soul baring first single “Sacrilege” starts the album off and comes complete with gospel chorus. This is followed by the minimal, early Cure sounding “Subway” that features Karen O looking for her lover in a subway station with the sound of a train travelling over tracks providing the beat. The title track is a return to the band’s more raucous early days followed by the dub reggae of “Under the Earth”.

While the first one-third of Mosquito is all over the map stylistically, the album comes to a close with its most consistent set of songs. The quiet “Always” gives way to one of the band’s most powerful moments in “Despair”. Over a clattering drumbeat, Karen pours her heart out. “There’s nothing to fear inside, through the darkness and the light, some sun has gotta rise”. “Wedding Song” could be “Maps pt 2” with Karen finally finding the love she had been looking for all these years. “In flames I sleep soundly with angels around me, I lay at your feet you’re the breath that I breathe”.

As always with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, nothing is ever easy. At times Mosquito sounds like a collection of b-sides and rarities rather than a cohesive album. So while not all of Mosquito works and can be very disjointed at times, Yeah Yeah Yeahs as a band continue to experiment and grow with each release. After 13 years they remain absolutely essential listening and at some point are going to release one hell of a singles collection.

8/10

Review also found at UMFM.com

Posted in Album Reviews

Simon & Garfunkel – Sounds of Silence (1966)

Posted on by Michael

61a7llV+ldL__AA160_“Hello darkness my old friend” is one of the classic lines in folk rock history and it’s the way the sophomore Simon & Garfunkel album, Sounds of Silence, opens. Released in 1966, just over a year after their debut and after Simon spent time in London playing the folk circuit as a solo artist, Sounds of Silence holds up quite well 45+ years after it was initially released.

There are several spots on the album that provide touchstones for recording artists that came much later. Billy Bragg appropriated the opening lines to the catchy “Leaves That Are Green” for his track “A New England” (“I was 21 years old when I wrote this song, I’m 22 now but won’t be for long”), “We’ve Got a Groovy Thing Goin’” has a lot in common with Belle & Sebastian’s “Legal Man” and character sketches such as “Richard Cory“ are reminiscent of mid 90s period blur. Besides the title track, two other classic Simon & Garfunkel songs appear on Sounds of Silence. The wistful “Kathy’s Song” and the utterly defiant “I am a Rock”. Music and book collectors everywhere can rejoice in the “I have my books, and my poetry to protect me” line after a particularly hard break-up.

Sounds of Silence as an album is often overshadowed by what came down the pipeline in the great Bookends and Bridge Over Trouble Water. While a listener would be well served by starting with those albums, eventually you’ll want to discover Sounds of Silence. A strong yet understated album from one folk rock’s best, this is truly where the legend began.

8/10