Review: The Great Lake Swimmers Share Their Solid Strokes

Great Lake Swimmers/Uncertain Country/Harbour Songs/Fontana
Four Out of Five Stars

Ontario’s Great Lake Swimmers are best described as a band that’s both intriguing and adventurous, but any clearer definition is difficult to come by. They’ve evolved out of their folk-rock origins, and yet their melodies still retain the compelling and commanding sound spawned from anthemic intent. While their new album, Uncertain Country, doesn’t necessarily retread on their former terrain, it does provide a compelling set of songs that are clearly capable of making an immediate and emphatic impression.

The tone is quickly established with the album’s agitated opener, that being the title track in particular. Nevertheless, there’s ample sentiment and softer sounds that follow—in particular the hushed melodies that give “I Tried To Reach You,” “Quiet Before the Storm” and “Moonlight, Stay Above,” a shimmering sense of pure aural enchantment. The band has always excelled at creating aural soundscapes with added enhancement, and in this case, the snippets between songs sometimes suggest the sound of a work in progress.

Nevertheless, deliberation doesn’t deter determination, and when they ratchet things up with the assured sound of “Swimming Like Flying” the ethereal ambiance that graces “Respect Of All Living Things” and the perky pacing of “Riverine” and “Flight Paths,” it becomes clear that they’re both confident and capable of delivering through both imagination and illumination. Uncertain Country conveys a stunning variety of tones and textures, allowing each offering to make its own emphatic impression.

In that regard, Great Lake Swimmers consistently keep their listeners entranced, whether through their astute arrangements (the high lonely whistle on the aforementioned “Moonlight, Stay Above” and the subdued strings of “Am I Floating in the Air” offer but two of the exquisite examples), or simply their eagerness and enthusiasm. 

Ultimately, Great Lake Swimmers fall into the category of bands birthed by our northern neighbors whose fame and appreciation have yet to fully take hold south of that northern border. That’s a shame really; given their melodic and majestic blend of luster and largess, they clearly deserve a wider reach.

Whether or not Uncertain Country brings that added interest remains to be seen, but one thing is certain. That is, it deserves to be heard. It’s nothing less than both cerebral and sublime.

Photo by Adam CK Vollick