The Besnard Lakes - The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse (Jagjaguwar, 2007)

Released earlier this year on the excellent Jagjaguwar label, The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse is an excellent album of grand baroque pop, that immediately draws the listener into its spacey, atmospheric world - most likely found floating somewhere up in the ether. Having drawn comparisons to both the Beach Boys and Pink Floyd, and sharing a similar aesthetic to more recent bands such as Mercury Rev, The Besnard Lakes create music that will appeal to fans of not only diverse musical genres, but also of diverse ages. Your little sister is just as likely to dig the album's mellow-pop opener, Disaster, as your cool uncle Gary is to enjoy the psychedelia of And You Lied To Me, while your boyfriend/girlfriend/best-friend will love the bombastic rock of Devastation.
Combining sounds both new and old, and using a diverse array of instruments, including strings, horns, organ and glockenspiel, ...Are The Dark Horse is a dense, multi-layered album, that offers something new with each listen. On the aforementioned Devastation - one of the album's highlights - a five member choir is used to great effect, on a track that sounds similar to something the Polyphonic Spree might come up with, were they to swap their brightly colored robes for something slightly more doleful. Another stand out, is the strange and delicate Because Tonight, which is a perfect for those occasions when all you want to do is close your eyes and drift peacefully above the clouds.... and who doesn't want to drift peacefully above the clouds every now and then?

Check Out: http://myspace.com/thebesnardlakes