Search - Great Lake Swimmers :: Great Lake Swimmers

Phenomenal first album

Rudy Foolish | Morgantown, WV USA | 09/20/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After having massively warped my copy of "Bodies & Minds," their newest release, from overuse in my car stereo, I recently caught a GLS show at a small local music café, where tragically there were less than 20 people in attendance, and where I was first introduced to the 10 ethereal, overpowering songs from this album, their first. Tony Dekker, finger-picking a very cello-sounding Seagull guitar, laid waste to the place. His vocals alone were enough to make you put off that bathroom break for painfully long stretches of time, striking a balance between the hushed intimacy of Sam Beam's whispered lullabies and the impressive range of Tim Buckley's operatic tenor. "Moving Pictures, Silent Films," a song in which the chord progression tumbles down the pentatonic scale in 3 sorrowful little movements, put more than a few lumps in the throats of those listening. And if "Merge, A Vessel" didn't leave the entire audience grief-stricken, "This is Not Like Home" left most digging in their pockets and purses for Kleenex, or choking down beer to regain composure. While I might be making their music sound like a trip to the funeral home, consider the monumental difficulty in creating something that has both the emotional and personal resonance as such a deathly event. Then consider whether or not it is time to stop ingesting sugar-coated, sunny pop numbers that deny a dismal reality for songs that look it square in the eye and embrace it."

Sirens songs

Alter Kocker | CHICO, CA United States | 07/08/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A great album for days spent endlessly wondering if she'll ever come back to you - if things will ever be. But be careful, it must be followed by the likes of James Brown, Sugarman 3, disco or heartfelt rock cause only real funk can break the funk you may find yourself in after listening to this beautiful overlooked best album I've discovered this year."

Where have these guys been hiding?

Jeremy P. Durand | Garland, TX United States | 10/09/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Or have I just been living in a bubble?



Great Lake Swimmers is one of the better bands I've heard in a long while. A refreshing deviation from the overhyped, mainstream offerings currently playing over the airwaves.



I agree with some that the songs are definitely not going to make you feel like all is sunny and sparkling in the world. They are, however, extremely beautiful and Tony Dekker's voice has a soothing quality about it that is very appealing.



I definitely hear some Neil Young influence. They also remind me a bit of South San Gabriel (specifically, Will Johnson).



If you like Iron & Wine (Sam Beam)or the artists referenced above, you'll likely enjoy this album."