Album Review: Dappled Cities - Lake Air

Sydneysiders Dappled Cities' much-anticipated follow-up to the very well-received Zounds possesses a quality that is quite remarkable for a bunch of schoolmates who are into their 15th year as a band and approaching (if not already well into) their 30th year as human beings.

Run With The Wind, the first track and current spotlight single, hints at an album perhaps darker than its predecessor. As far as stand-out singles go, it's probably their best to date, particularly if one is to judge a song by how many times you can return to it and keep finding something new. Lake Air is everything you'd expect from a Dappled album — bold, unabashedly pop and with just the slightest hint of cynicism — but the difference here compared to past efforts is the experimental side is much more focused, with everything the band has learnt and knows doesn't work having been left aside. It's somewhat ironic that they've taken this risk, but the band themselves sound more comfortable than ever with how things are, which can be partly attributed to experience. It's difficult to pick a preferred song, however a few notable tracks include Real Love, perhaps the most coy song since Holy Chord, and Working The Mould, a sleeper hit that's a potential second single. The simple piano ballad, Waves, weaves a special type of magic, but it's The Leopard that sums up, in four minutes and 25 seconds, everything I love about this band.

Despite some of it being recorded in Paris and London, there's definitely a familiarity on Lake Air that makes you feel at home, and further makes you wish they never stop making records.