19/01/12 @ Static Gallery
“Last time I saw Lanterns on the Lake”, explains a self-confessed groupie in the Static Gallery bar, “they were supposed to be playing the bombed-out church, but they had to shift them to the O2 Academy when the wind got up. There was a rock band on upstairs and it just ruined the performance.”
A bit harsh on the rock band, we feel, but you’d really have to see Lanterns on the Lake to appreciate what she meant by that. For these Northumberland shoe-gazers, location and atmosphere are of paramount importance. They’ve played in such fluffy environs as Britain’s highest pub, the Tan Hill Inn in Swaledale, surrounded by sheep and cows - a fact that makes tonight’s gig at Static seem comparatively rowdy.
But the hush descends at the right moments, almost to the point where you’re afraid someone will eyeball you for taking a particularly noisy gulp of lager.
Shy and introverted, but ridiculously cute, Lanterns on the Lake lead us through 40 minutes of sweeping, evocative balladry, reminiscent perhaps of a less cantankerous Arcade Fire, but with a low, susurrant electronic effect that apparently can only be created by playing an electric guitar with a fiddle and through a wah wah pedal. We’re unsure whether this is just for show, or because you can’t play a cello through a wah wah pedal.
Lanterns on the Lake songs are not merely written. They are built. The themes are folky, but so as not to get lost in the waves of ‘Sigurossian’ crescendoes, petite vocalist Hazel Wilde’s velvety vocals often drop into the pregnant gaps in between, affording them a subtle prominence.
There’s a fair amount of instrument-swapping going on (we count a total of three drummer changes). Being multi-instrumentalists with a small orchestra in tow does have its caveats though, one of which manifests itself towards the end of their set.
“Um, that was our last song…we broke something. Sorry,” announces co-vocalist Adam Sykes bashfully. A forlorn audience persuades them to play recent single ‘Keep On Trying’ - essentially the signature tune of their critically-acclaimed debut album ‘Gracious Tide, Take Me Home’ - without keyboards. It’s a fragile tale of personal struggle whose video is simply a montage of subtle images of working class England.
Ships In The Rain by Lanterns on the Lake
Undeniably, it is this universal quality which makes Lanterns on the Lake so lovable, and a poignancy of delivery which is rarely found. Bright hopes indeed.
Words: Peter Charles
Images: Peter Charles
Links:
http://www.lanternsonthelake.com
http://www.facebook.com/Lanterns-On-The-Lake
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