Album Mini-review: The Besnard Lakes — A Coliseum Complex Museum
File Next to: Flaming Lips, Polyphonic Spree, Rain Parade
Long song titles, albums with epic names, and a gauzy space-rock vibe are the hallmarks of this Montréal group, newly expanded to a six-piece. They were last heard from on a 2015 EP, Golden Lion; only its title track is repeated on A Coliseum Complex Museum. The group’s fifth album finds them continuing to hone and refine their impressionistic sonic approach. That effort does result in a slight lack of variety; put another way, if you like album opener “The Bray Road Beast,” you’ll dig the seven tunes that follow it. Like label mates Black Mountain, they craft a sound that’s equal parts reserved distance and a swirling, psychedelic stew. Creaky, slightly-out of tune Mellotrons (are there other kinds?) compete with chugging rhythms that evoke both 80s paisley underground and Yellow Submarine-era Beatles are their wide-screen, technicolor peak.
About the Author
Bill Kopp
With a background in marketing and advertising, Bill Kopp got his professional start writing for Trouser Press. After a stint as Editor-in-chief for a national music magazine, Bill launched Musoscribe in 2009, and has published new content every business day since then (and every single day since 2018). The interviews, essays, and reviews on Musoscribe reflect Bill's keen interest in American musical forms, most notably rock, jazz, and soul. His work features a special emphasis on reissues and vinyl. Bill's work also appears in many other outlets both online and in print. He also researches and authors liner notes for album reissues -- more than 30 to date -- and co-produced a reissue of jazz legend Julian "Cannonball" Adderley's final album. His first book, Reinventing Pink Floyd was published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2018, and in paperback in 2019. His second book, Disturbing the Peace: 415 Records and the Rise of New Wave, will be published in 2021 by HoZac Books.