The Besnard Lakes
Golden Lion
Jagjaguwar

January 22 sees the new album from The Besnard Lakes. A Coliseum Complex Museum will be the Canadians 5th album proper. Until then we are served the chilled and heated single track "Golden Lion" from the dream pop gang.

I wasn't as happy with their last album Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO, than I was with their former beauties: The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse (Jagjaguwar, 2007) and The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night (Jagjaguwar, 2010). Their club gig in Oslo in April 2010 was a magic treat. The sound of "Golden Lion" makes me 'see' a majestic, gold-shiny Lion king stroll through the grass of the savannah, perfectly in its right place. Muscles flexing, mane swaying, and as relaxed as only a cat can be - while on alert every second. Like always, Jace Lasek and his players - who by now is a 'six piece': Lasek's wife Olga Goreas on bass/vocals; drummer Kevin Laing; guitarist Richard White; new guitarist Robbi MacArthur [since last year, when Richard White stepped down - at least from touring]; and another newcomer, keyboard player Sheenah Ko] still roam the psychedelic, shoegaze-tinted indie rock. They tag themselves performing music being the 'rapture of My Bloody Valentine entwined with the romance of Fleetwood Mac'. Well, speaking of the latter of those bands: For the moment The Besnard Lakes are 'echoing prime Fleetwood Mac, as they actually now have two girl/boy couplings in the line-up' [Lasek and Goreas, plus MacArthur and Ko]. Let's hope they won't copy Fleetwood Mac on the 'romance side' (or the lack of it...).

"Golden Lion" sneaks up on us, being an exciting taster off the coming album. 'In a dark and stormy night / With the light coming over your halo...'. This is trademark sound of The Besnard Lakes. Dreamy, blurred, and free-floating pop, with Lasek's high-pitch vocals surfing over the sounds of music. Catchy and puzzling. Like, this is music thrown at you like they were reflections from a dewed mirror. Shimmering slow-motion and fragmented dreams. Enter the comfortably dizzying world of The Besnard Lakes.

Copyright © 2015 Håvard Oppøyen