Customer Reviews

Lost Channels

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This CD opens with 3 songs steeped in world weariness. The lyrics of the first song, Palmistry state: "You can see by the lines on my hand, I've been carryin a heavy load." The simple repeated lyrics of "Everything is Moving so Fast" follow the same theme. Similarly, my favorite song on this CD is "Pulling on a Line.", with the chorus. "pullin on a line, pullin on a line and sometimes it pulls on me."

This is a CD that features stunningly beauiful vocal harmonies throughout, based on what band's website aptly describes as "the singular voice of (lead singer) Tony Dekker, a voice that summons ghosts from times past. (and) It's a voice that is capable of conveying heartache and comfort all in the space of a single phrase." The vocals in "Everything is Moving so Fast" and "River's End" are especially beautiful. The vocals are reminiscent of folk-style Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young songs such as "Teach Your Children".

Listening to the songs in order the additional themes are estrangement (Concrete Heart) and separation (She Comes to Me in Dreams). This is followed by unexpected sources of hope and beauty such as "The Chorus in the Underground" and the simple bells of "Singer Castle Bells". Further songs such as "New Light" and the last song: "Unison Falling into Harmony" convey a sense of hope and peacefullness though still suffused with sadness.

I continue to be intrigued by the lyrics and drawn in by the beautiful music after repeated listens.

I commented on my own review to give links to a great CBC News interview and album review and also to the band's website where you can listen to full tracks of several of the songs. Enjoy.

Recorded along the Thousand Islands bordering Canada and the US, this sounds like a riparian pastoral suite. Tony Dekker leads this hushed band, amping up to current Wilco or mid-period REM volume on the first three and the fifth songs. These don't display the power of Dekker's soft quaver as much as their standard repertoire of quieter, slower, melancholy tunes.

Dekker and band understandably wanted to shake up their sound on this fourth record. The songs that are louder, however, seem nondescript next to ones such as "Concrete Heart" which despite the lyric sheet that makes the words look nearly indecipherable in size and color, still stick with you in simple poetry. The album sinks in as it progresses, and the later songs return to the earlier albums such as "Ongiara" and "Bodies and Minds" with a chamber-folk setting that adds depth subtly. GLS has progressed as the band coalesced to flesh out the low-fi, skeletal, haunting sound of the self-titled debut, and despite the added fullness here on #4, I still prefer the more burrowed, hibernating feel of the softer songs that wrap you under layers.

This is not a record to blast. It's suited for introspection, rain, and waking up or settling down. We all need such music however raucous other CDs on our shelves speak to other moods. It took me a while to get used to Dekker's resolutely steady pace of singing and playing, but this will comfort those in the mood for music that makes you turn inward. How he and his band manage to do this without seeming pitiful or self-absorbed is a difficult quality to explain, but I think more often than not, this record succeeds in separating the fine line on the right side, between twee and depth, pose and insight.

This CD opens with 3 songs steeped in world weariness. The lyrics of the first song, Palmistry state: "You can see by the lines on my hand, I've been carryin a heavy load." The simple repeated lyrics of "Everything is Moving so Fast" follow the same theme. Similarly, my favorite song on this CD is "Pulling on a Line.", with the chorus. "pullin on a line, pullin on a line and sometimes it pulls on me."

This is a CD that features stunningly beauiful vocal harmonies throughout, based on what band's website aptly describes as "the singular voice of (lead singer) Tony Dekker, a voice that summons ghosts from times past. (and) It's a voice that is capable of conveying heartache and comfort all in the space of a single phrase." The vocals in "Everything is Moving so Fast" and "River's End" are especially beautiful. The vocals are reminiscent of folk-style Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young songs such as "Teach Your Children".

Listening to the songs in order the additional themes are estrangement (Concrete Heart) and separation (She Comes to Me in Dreams). This is followed by unexpected sources of hope and beauty such as "The Chorus in the Underground" and the simple bells of "Singer Castle Bells". Further songs such as "New Light" and the last song: "Unison Falling into Harmony" convey a sense of hope and peacefullness though still suffused with sadness.

I continue to be intrigued by the lyrics and drawn in by the beautiful music after repeated listens.

I commented on my own review to give links to a great CBC News interview and album review and also to the band's website where you can listen to full tracks of several of the songs. Enjoy.

It did not take long for "Lost Channels" by Great Lake Swimmers to become one of those recordings I have to get a "fix of every day. This music is harmonic dopamine, quickening the pulse, mood-altering, blissful. The band surrounding main man Tom Dekker proves more than a supporting cast, taking his songs and turning them into shimmering vignettes.

No filler or schmaltz clogs up the recording, and sentiment is discarded for something clearer, the vision and feelings that come from living without resolution or answers. This music captures the spirit of those souls doomed to quest for love and enlightenment in a fallen world, showing that such a quest is noble, if perhaps doomed.

I thought this idea of recording in historic places could smack of gimmickry, but it works: the instruments resonant distinctly and the voices of Dekker and his supporting singers floats clear as a bell from my Vandersteen speakers. For what it's worth, this is one of those recordings that sounds entirely different when played through a very good stereo (I guess one could make that point about any recording, but the emotional impact of this album is just not the same for me when I hear it in the car or on a smaller sound system.)

"Lost Channels" by Great Lake Swimmers is a great album. I just recently got the chance to listen to it and I believe that it is one of the best albums I have heard this year. If you are a fan of folk music with meaningful lyrics and beautiful harmonies, this is a must have album for you! This album offers a mix of both upbeat ("Palmistry") and mellow ("Stealing Tomorrow") songs that keep the album interesting. I definitely recommend that everyone give this album a listen.

I think I downloaded this album because it was the special of the day and I live in the Great Lake state, so it's fair to say I stumbled on this band, but I am definitely a convert for this Toronto act. The vocals are subtly understated, so that lines like, "I am in an uproar" take on a certain poignancy. There is a lot to listen to in the instrumentation, such as the dampened bass line in "River's Edge" that adds (I think) a minor seventh where you might not expect it. Lots of little nuanced details to discover after many listens.

This is great headphone music; highly recommended.

Great Lake Swimmers is the one of the best Canadian roots folk/rock bands and Lost Channels is their best album. Finally the band has terrific songs with beautiful sound and production. Palmistry and Pulling On A Line are probably the stand-out tracks, but it's all good. Tony Dekker is clearly a songwriter to be reckoned with. And, if you get a chance, see this band live. They can really play and sing. The only problem I have with Lost Channels is that it gets a bit samey sounding when listening to the whole thing in one sitting. Gorgeous digi-pack packaging and design with Lost Channels too and it is a treat to get all of the lyrics so you can sing along if you like. But make sure you have your spectacles handy as the print is mighty small. What is that, four point font?

Canada-based Great Lake Swimmers' 4th release, Lost Channels, is awash in memorable acoustic folk rock tunes. The soothing tones and purity of the songs/harmonies, jangly guitars and calming melodies steer the music well clear of anything alternative. Instead, the production offers an ethereal soundscape that offers intermittent flavors of The Mamas & The Papas, Fleet Foxes, Wilco (as in, "California Stars") or Cowboy Junkies. A really nice album.

GENRES: Rock, Mellow Rock.

BUY IF YOU LIKE: Fleet Foxes, Iron & Wine, Cowboy Junkies, Simon & Garfunkel.

MUST HEAR TRACKS: "Palmistry," "Everything Is Moving So Fast," "Pulling On A Line," "Still," "River's Edge."

The music on this c.d.has a wide-open sound.Floating in space. Lifting you right into the story of each song. Touching your heart and inner senses.

Wonderful CD of folksy-acoustic tunes dripping with lush harmonies. My 15 y.o. daughter thinks it is "album of the year."