{ken’s links}

Seeing a show at the Black Cat’s “backstage” is a cool experience. It’s a very cozy room with a small stage. Maybe 200 or so people can fit. Having said that, seeing a band that you really enjoy is a very special experience if you can catch them at a venue like this. This was the case for me yesterday, when Montreal’s Besnard Lakes performed here.

Besnard Lakes are led by the husband-wife team of Jace Lasek (keyboards, lead and backup vocals, lead and rhythm guitar) and Olga Goreas (bass, flute, backup and lead vocals). I love their two latest albums, but went into this show with average expectations. I wasn’t sure how they’d pull off the layered, atmospheric and often ambient vibe they throw down on their records. But Wow, I was pleasantly surprised. Right from the start, Jace’s falsetto vocals pretty much melted my face off. Not sure how he can pull off such power at that high pitch.

It’s fair to say that they push the boundaries of the traditional rock four-piece lineup. Throughout the show, all of the shoegazey, jangly, tremolo and wammy-bar driven effects were all in their right places. The only misstep would be some technical difficulties that would result in Olga’s bass cutting in and out. Opening band Land of Talk had similar issues, as front woman Elizabeth Powell’s guitars refused to stay in tune, but I guess that’s live rock and roll for ya.

I was able to sneakily capture their performance of “Light Up the Night,” off their latest release, The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night. During the last minute of the song, you can hear the bass cut out and when they finish, Jace instructs Olga to plug directly into the amp.

Also, here are the openers Land of Talk performing during this same DC show. Footage captured by local bloggers, DCist: