THUNDER BAY - Great Lake Swimmers, the Canadian folk-rock band out of Toronto, have forged their unique sound by recording in unusual spaces and performing intimate shows.
The band will be back in Thunder Bay for the second time in less than a year and their upcoming performance will bring that intimate sound back to the stage.
“We’re revisiting the quieter side of our catalogue and performing as an acoustic three-piece band,” Great Lake Swimmers lead vocalist and guitarist, Tony Dekker said in an interview. “And people seemed to be consistently asking us to play songs from our earlier albums, so this tour is for them.”
Great Lake Swimmers will be playing Crocks in Thunder Bay on Oct. 26 as part of their Floating Through the Forest Tour.
“Having already done a full Canadian tour with the five-piece, we wanted to do something a bit different, and also try to reach places we wouldn’t normally play or haven’t played before,” Dekker added.
In 2015, Great Lake Swimmers released of their sixth album, A Forest of Arms. Dekker explained much of the writing on the album was inspired by his time spent in the Great Bear Rainforest with the World Wildlife Fund in B.C.
“It brought a lot of the ideas I’d been thinking and writing about with my music to a fever pitch,” he said. “The centerpiece of the album, which contains the lyrics in its title is called The Great Bear and was written while on that trip. That part of country has inspired me in so many ways.”
Much of the inspiration came from seeing plans to develop the area to transport raw oil. Dekker said after being there, he was moved to say something about the negative impact these developments would have on such an important area.
“But I have to say, the Coastal First Nations in that area, B.C. in particular, are standing up for the land there, against great odds, and if I can add my voice in some small way, to amplify that cause, I will,” Dekker said. “We’re living through a boiling point right now and it’s surprising more people aren’t outraged.”
Great Lake Swimmers have been known to step outside of the studio and utilize unconventional spaces for recording albums. From a rural church to an abandoned grain silo, Dekker is always in search of finding these special acoustic spaces. A Forest of Arms was no different, having been recorded in Tyendinaga Caves, Ontario’s oldest natural cavern.
“It’s about the natural acoustics first and foremost, which adds a sort of not-quite tangible sonic layer to the recordings, but also, it’s about making the process special and memorable for us as a band and for the project itself,” Dekker said. “I like to think that we use the spaces we record in as if they are instruments themselves. It’s also a way of tapping in to the energy and excitement of recording sounds in a place where maybe no one has done that before.”
Dekker added recording in these kinds of locations can be challenging, but they always offer a unique sound.
“I think that especially for the vocal tracks, it brought out a performance that we wouldn’t have gotten otherwise, like in the confines of a regular studio,” he said. “There’s also no way to fake the performance when you have all of that ambient sound swirling around.”
Great Lake Swimmers, known for their lyrics evoking images of Canada and the wild, as well as their gentle and soft tones, adapt well to almost any setting.
“Our music is really suited to acoustic spaces like halls and churches or other places that have special acoustics, but it can also really work and still be atmospheric in a setting like a rock club,” Dekker said. “My hope is that the music creates a world that you can slip into for a while.”
The last time Great Lake Swimmers performed in Thunder Bay the band unplugged and stepped onto the dance floor to perform with fans surrounding them and singing along for an encore.
“It's a way of connecting on a deeper and more intimate level,” Dekker said. “We were really trying to bridge that gap on that tour. Also, we’re essentially a string band that’s plugged in, with upright bass, banjo, violin, acoustic guitar, etc., so that is a nice way to actually play music, in the air, without any amplification. It hits a little more directly.”
Great Lake Swimmers will be performing at Crocks, along with singer-songwriter, Megan Bonnell on Wednesday, Oct. 26.
