Great Lake Swimmers – Bodies And Minds

Selected Press for Bodies and Minds

“Tony Dekker takes acoustics very seriously. His haunting, somber ballads emit an otherworldly quality, due in no small part to the natural environment in which they’re captured … Natural reverb and folkie arrangements complement Dekker’s soft voice perfectly” – Rob Bolton, Exclaim!

BODIES AND MINDS Rating: NNNN – “If there were justice in this world, Tony Dekker’s hauntingly clear tenor would be worshipped by legions of acolytes who’d put the combined fan bases of Thom Yorke and Damien Rice to shame. Everything the Great Lake Swimmers mainman sings sounds like the sweet mantra of a repentant sinner chased by demons, while his band’s precise, echoing arrangements of Wurlitzer, banjo, lap steel and fragile acoustic plinking mimic the quiet desperation of Dekker’s existential cries. His lyrics, about feeling trapped in his own skin, the redemptive/ destructive power of love and dodging imaginary beasties, are overwhelmingly intimate, but they’re balanced by a restrained openness in the album’s production. Even the soaring choir on Falling Into The Sky is just the right size. GLS should give lessons on how to succeed at the whole quiet-is-the-new-loud thing.” – Sarah Liss, NOW Toronto, 10 March 2005