The Besnard Lakes: Raindrops

By Kerry Doole

The Besnard Lakes - Raindrops (Flemish Eye): Montreal psych-rock outfit The Besnard Lakes has announced its new (and sixth) album, The Besnard Lakes Are The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings, will come out on Jan. 29, 2021, the first release via the group's new labels — Flemish Eye in Canada, Fat Cat Records in the US.

The return to action is welcomed, as the first single, Raindrops, confirms that The Besnard Lakes' penchant for lush and haunting psychedelic soundscapes remains. Word is the album comprises a 72-minute suite, a decided oddity in this era of shrunken attention spans.

The record comes out as a double LP, the four sides entitled as, in order, Near Death, Death, After Death, and Life. A label press release explains "It's a journey into (and back from) the brink: the story of The Besnard Lakes' own odyssey but also a remembrance of others', especially the death of [mainman] Jace Lasek's father in 2019."

The band notes that "the song and video [directed by Joseph Yarmush] for Raindrops details a psychedelic flight through the mind while deep in an altered state. The song lyrically references the death of Mark Hollis from Talk Talk (“Garden of Eden spirited”) and also describes the idea of evolution determining the story of the Garden of Eden."

Heady stuff, but The Besnard Lakes have the musical chops and lyrical intellect to justify the concept album approach.

The group is a formidable force in concert, so here's hoping that's possible soon.

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PR: Adam Bentley – Auteur Research

Management: Estelle Priest, Shaun Bronstein - Danagement

Booking (North America): Adam Soloway, First Date Touring