(Jagjaguwar/Inertia)

Husband-wife duo’s latest collection of galaxy-huge psychedelia

Previous album The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse was one of the finest releases of 2007, jamming hazy rock, monolithic guitars, Beach Boys harmonies, Pink Floyd grandeur and Sigur Rós mystery into a genuine modern psychedelic masterpiece. In short, a damn hard record to beat. Things is, for the first eight or nine minutes of The Besnard Lakes’ new album ….Are The Roaring Night, you think they’re going to pull it off!  Like The Ocean, Like The Innocent Parts I and II is possibly the greatest piece of music they’ve yet composed, a perfectly constructed epic that builds from a disembodied whirl of synth and gaseous sunburst guitar into a chugging, harmony-rich rock anthem. Chicago Train pits Jace Lacek’s soaring falsetto against a stately string section, before the song takes a diversion into cavernous indie rock, while wife Olga Goreas takes the lead vocal for single Albatross, another creeper with its rich ‘70s FM rock harmonies and haunting MBV-style guitar effects. Further highlights include the plaintive ballad Light Up The Night, spooky Angelo Badalamenti-flavoured closer The Lonely Moan and Land Of Living Skies Parts I and II (another Like The Ocean, Like The Innocent-style epic – not as jaw-dropping but still beautiful). And while as a whole, the record isn’t quite up to the standard of its glorious predecessor, it comes pretty darn close.

****½

MATT THROWER

Be first to comment on this article

Write Comment
Comments are submitted for possible publication on the condition that they may be edited. Poster's IP addresses are logged.
Name:
Comment:
Code:*