Album Review: The Besnard Lakes - Until In Excess, Imperceptible UFO

The Montreal scene once spawned epic acts like Arcade Fire and Wolf Parade but in recent times has turned its attention to more electronic acts. That hasn't stopped The Besnard Lakes from sticking to their guns, though. For their fourth release, the ridiculously titled Until In Excess, Imperceptible UFO, this Montreal four-piece continue to deliver the epic soundscapes that established them as one of Canada's more creative exports. But where albums like 2009's ...Are The Roaring Night was an ominous beast of a record, packed full of heavy guitars, soaring melodies and a real sense of doom, this release attempts to be a little more dreamy. The end result, though, is something of a mixed bag.

This lush sound is immediately apparent on opener 46 Satires as Olga Goreas' voice washes over the listener, backed by some heavily echoed guitars. This song starts to draw you in when a clear guitar melody breaks through the fuzz. But it's over almost before it begins and the song then seems content to just trudge along. And, that's the problem with too many of the eight tracks here; they are so laid-back and dreamy they come and go without making any real impact. To be fair, this album is something of a grower and there are some good songs here too. People Of The Sticks manages to be poppy and intense at the same time, while Colour Yr Lights In produces a big psychedelic chorus before unleashing the guitars. But many tracks just don't go anywhere from promising starts; like Alamogordo, where a sinister build-up is finished off by three minutes of one keyboard note in an illustration of why this is something of a misstep for these talented Canadians.