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Rating: If with the previous “The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse,” the four Canadians were carefully aiming, now, with the new “The Besnard Lakes Are The Roaring Night,” they shoot their arrow hitting the bullseye. Yes, because the band led by the Lasek-Goreas duo offers us a precise and highly enjoyable album, right from the first listen.
The foundations remain the same, with a general mood drawing from the current Canadian scene, especially the New Pornographers. But here one encounters a mix of different stylistic outlets: indeed, there’s a bit of everything; it ranges from warm and colorful pop-branded psychedelia to more classic rock, passing through shoegaze and dream-pop fluctuations. All with a decidedly progressive twist. It's important to highlight the choral imprint, reaching a peak when the voices of the two leaders alternate as if they wanted to confess something to each other, but out loud.
The album begins with “Like The Ocean; Like The Innocent,” divided into two parts: the first is more than ever a dreamy start, the second gives a sense of the content, shifting from dreamlike moments to rocking bursts. From here, you can feel the strong presence of shoegaze ranging from Ride and Jesus And Mary Chain to the more modern and “hidden” Televise. At this point, also listen to the fiery “Glass Printer.” Dream-pop peaks are reached instead in the calmer “Chicago Train,” which in its finale turns into an intense pop gem. A similar composition in the following “Albatross” (the extracted single), with Olga’s beautiful wandering voice, accompanied by a sound reminiscent of the more dream and shoegaze Great Britain. The only moment, in my opinion, more withered is the hybrid between country-rock and traditional psychedelia of “The Living Skies,” with a very “classic” guitar solo. Very close to Pink Floyd in the subsequent “And This Is What We Call Progress” and “Light Up The Night,” the latter deeply romantic, is undoubtedly a strong point of Our Own. The conclusion comes with the quieter litany of “The Lonely Moan.”
What can I say, with this release Besnard Lakes dignifiedly sign their own sound. Highly recommended because this is one of those truly beautiful albums.
Rating: 8/10
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