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FeedSpree Music with J. DiDomizio: Great Lake Swimmers
Image courtesy of (weekwerk) and the artist
Deep inside a bin of leftover promo CDs, two albums sat waiting to be opened, reviewed, and enjoyed. Neither of these discs, or the surrounding leftovers, had been given more than a cursory listen by the staff at the college radio station I worked for at the time. Which was understandable as there were, and continues to be, more music released than can be consumed by any individual. The first of these discs would be set aside for six months, revisited, and loved, seeping its way into my life song by song. Conversely, the second album let me sail into its textures upon first listen. That first disc was Okkervil River’s Black Sheep Boy and the second was Great Lake Swimmers’ Bodies and Minds.
Lyrics were what hooked me into Bodies and Minds, and for most of GLS’s subsequent albums lyrics continued to be a key component despite their deceptive simplicity. Each line is infused with the haunted melancholy of Tony Dekker’s voice, which informs the band’s folk-rock sound, creating an atmosphere that is both soft and dark. Their penchant for recording in abandoned grain silos and old castles gives a particular visual to their chosen acoustic aesthetic. There are ghosts and memories reverberating throughout the Great Lake Swimmers’ landscape, be it a desolate, crumbling factory rusting in the sun or the discomfort of fitting into your own skin in a crowded city.
In the past, GLS has been compared to Neil Young and Iron & Wine. More recently, 2009’s Lost Channels—with its beefed up production, and a little jangle in the guitar—has drawn comparisons to R.E.M. from its radio ascent in the early 90s. This is a divergence from the minimalist ambient-folk production of Bodies and Minds, but it certainly progression rather than fault. For example, take a listen to “She Comes to Me in Dreams” from that album.
Great Lake Swimmers’ first two discs, Great Lake Swimmers and Bodies and Minds, will be reissued for American audiences at the end of August, just in time for their gig at Babeville’s Ninth Ward on September 2nd. After that they’ll be making an appearance at the U.S. Open over Labor Day weekend, as they finish up their remaining tour dates and continue to work on their fifth album. Here’s the band performing “Various Stages” off of Bodies and Minds to give you a taste of what not to miss.
Joseph DiDomizio is a writer, filmmaker, and sometimes a musician. He has been writing about music, movies, books and pop-culture for several years. You can follow him on Twitter if you’d like.
