Today, Toronto’s indie darlings Great Lake Swimmers are announcing their return to the road for a string of tour dates throughout Canada beginning in June. Tickets for all dates are on sale at www.greatlakeswimmers.com. Full tour dates can be found below.  

The JUNO Award nominated and Polaris Music Prize shortlisted band are also sharing their cover of the late Jason Molina’s (Songs: Ohia, Magnolia Electric Co.) “The Dark Don’t Hide It” recorded live for the series The Influences in Utrecht.

“Several years ago we lost Jason Molina, a brilliant songwriter and a powerful voice in the world of independent music,” says lead singer-songwriter Tony Dekker. “I’ve been thinking about his songs a lot lately, especially while reading the book about his life, Riding With The Ghost by Erin Osmon. We had the honour of opening for Magnolia Electric Co. a few times over the years in places as disparate as Austin, Texas and Brussels, Belgium. Jason’s music has always meant a lot to me, as Songs: Ohia, Magnolia Electric Co., and also in his solo albums and collaborations, and it is in regular rotation in our tour van. Our cover of ‘The Dark Don’t Hide It’ by Magnolia Electric Co. is an homage to his influence and the body of work he gave us.”  

WATCH AND SHARE “THE DARK DON’T HIDE IT” HERE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLlM3RpacXM

Great Lake Swimmers also recorded covers of PJ Harvey’s “The Desperate Kingdom Of Love” and the opening track, “The Talking Wind”, from their latest LP, The Waves, The Wake, for The Influences series.  

Out now via Nettwerk, The Waves, The Wake was recorded in the 145-year-old Bishop Cronyn Memorial Church and produced by Chris Stringer (Union Sound). On the LP, Dekker decided to challenge himself by writing new music without any acoustic guitar, which has always been his instrumental mainstay. Each song on the album is brought to life in its own distinctive way, using an acoustic palette that includes woodwinds, harp, congas, marimba and pipe organ.  

GREAT LAKE SWIMMERS ON TOUR
Jun   6 – Montreal QC @ Ritz
Jun   7 – Wakefield QC @ The Blacksheep Inn
Jun   8 – Burnstown ON @ Neat Café
Jun 14 – Peterborough ON @ Market Hall
Jun 15 – Kingston ON @ Grad Club
Jun 21 – Ridgeway ON @ The Sanctuary  

Stream/Buy/Download THE WAVES, THE WAKE: http://smarturl.it/TheWavesTheWake  

PRAISE FOR GREAT LAKE SWIMMERS  

“The Waves, The Wake is a beautiful achievement, rife with rich and varied instrumentation and textures, engaging vocals, and bittersweet, poignant lyrics.”  – Big Takeover  

“The shimmer that illuminate such songs as “Mouth of Flames” and “The Open Sea” are contrasted, albeit briefly, in the upbeat tick of “Alone But Not Alone” and the quiet insistence of “Side Effects,” but it’s the acapella “Visions of a Distant World” that best defines the effort overall…melodies that are both elusive and surreal.” – Paste Magazine  

“Dekker renews Great Lake Swimmers’ sound while still retaining the atmospheric singing and subtle yet intricate guitar playing that are quintessential to the band. It’s a tricky balance, but Dekker and his sprawling team of contributors pull it off with aplomb.” – Exclaim!

“…magnificently beautiful orchestrations, this instrumentation flourishes thanks to the exquisite acoustics of the 145-year-old church in which the band recorded. Every sound resounds to its fullest potential, filling the building with magnificent auras….The Waves, The Wake is a vibrant display of Dekker and company challenging themselves, even after 15 years.” – Riff Magazine  

“…a beautiful, hypnotic track wrapped in a rich, comforting warmth…” – CBC   “’The Talking Wind’ sees a band experimenting with orchestral sounds in a novel ways, and to significant artistic effect.” – Culture Collide

“’Alone But Not Alone’ is a breezy 60s inspired track that’s more than meets the eye” – NOISEY