Fans of Great Lake Swimmers can stop holding their breath-the band has released New Wild Everywhere, their first release since 2009’s Lost Channels. The new tracks sound strangely familiar, as is the nature of Tony Dekker’s wonderfully peaceful voice, and with the exception of a few songs with feet-stomping appeal (“Easy Come Easy Go,” “Changes with the Wind”), most of the album is a soothing and easy listen.
The album opens with “Think That You Might Be Wrong,” a quiet number rich with strings and lovely vocal harmonies. The title track “New Wild Everywhere” observes the dark side of nature and is probably the catchiest of the album.
Great Lake Swimmers have a history of recording in unique locations, including an abandoned grain silo and a lakeside church in Southern Ontario, but they ventured into a conventional recording studio for the majority of New Wild Everywhere. The one exception is “The Great Exhale,” which was recorded in the Lower Bay Station, an abandoned subway platform in Toronto (although it sounds as if it were recorded in a meadow of fresh flowers).
Ending the album is “Les Champs De Progeniture,” a French translation of a previous song on the record, “Fields of Progeny.” Though finishing with French lyrics is a bit peculiar, the song puts a nice ribbon on the overall folksy feel of the album.
New Wild Everywhere isn’t a big departure from the sound of their previous albums, but the stable familiarity of their music is comforting. Each new album offers a sense of security, and this one is no different.
-Alex Knoll
