The Besnard Lakes are the Dark Horse

Today's Music That Jason Hopes He Got the Title Right For is The Besnard Lakes are the Dark Horse, by none other than the Besnard Lakes. Someday I hope one of you can tell me what exactly a Besnard Lake is. Probably just a lake that is somewhere near Besnard, I assume. Given that this is the internet, some who knows will probably leave a post here that is both smug and anonymous to tell me exactly where Besnard is.

Anyway, I rather like this album. Its sound is very much a throwback to the psychedelic music of the late sixties, the Byrds and their ilk, without being either a direct link or a blatant imitation of any particular artist. Initially I thought the album sounded more like a mellow cousin to Wall-era Pink Floyd, without the electric guitar or the overbearing misanthropy, but consequent listens have pointed me a little further back along the rock timeline. Probably the closest modern peers this album has would be Low, or maybe the Magnetic Fields.

The album is somewhat relaxed but never inactive; it isn't quite ominous, but it does have a looming quality to it. It's warm, but spooky in its own way, using plenty of strings and some sound effects to achieve its ends. The vocals are solid and very much in line with the mood of the album. Overall I think this is a strong work; if I was to make a top ten-or-whatever list of albums that I got this year, I suspect this one would be hard-pressed not to sneak in the bottom half. Maybe someone who doesn't appreciate Pink Floyd as much as I do would disagree, but I would recommend this album even in spite of my bias.

In Other News:
I'm not even sure what to tell you today.