The Besnard Lakes
The Besnard Lakes are the Dark Horse
(Jagjaguwar)
Where the Besnard Lakes’ 2003 debut began like some lethal gas brewing in your pipes, this one opens brightly: “Baby, I’ve got some words for you.” OK, the song is “Disaster,” but a change of pace is afoot. Dark Horse puts greater emphasis on structure and narrative. Husband-and-wife team Jace Lasek and Olga Goreas are the creative core. Members of Godspeed, Stars and the Dears drop by to lend proceedings some bohemian Shangri-las resonance. “Devastation” envisions looting, the rich shooting the poor, culture evaporating, the devil overhead. A triple-guitar assault arrives, as if dark art might be redeemed by rock.
—Doug Taylor