Austinist Interviews SXSW: The Besnard Lakes
Montreal's Besnard Lakes are not your typical Canadian outfit. When you think of an outfit fronted by a husband and wife duo, you probably think of sugary slop soaked with trite lyrics and knowing glances, but don't make that mistake when it comes to The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse, the band's latest effort. Roy Orbison and Brian Wilson spring to mind as masters of falsetto harmony, and that comparison is legit, but we also love the fact that Dark Horse saunters through very dark shoe-gazing and melancholy rock fields as well. All the elements are here, and we can't wait to see them play during SXSW. They took a few moments to answer some questions for us recently:
Care to share a story about a previous trip to Austin or SXSW?
All I remember was walking around in a stupor the entire time we were there - I remember falling in love with the warm weather, seeing the bat colonies, going to the springs, you know, touristy stuff. I'm a sucker for that. Oh, and seeing some great shows. The Raveonettes were particularly memorable.
How do your parents describe your music to people?
I think they're so dumbstruck by its awesome-ness that words do not come to their lips.
What music are you looking forward to in 2007? At SXSW specifically?
Iggy Pop and the Stooges. How cool is that!
Is SXSW still fun if most of the people watching you play are industry?
Yeah, it is. Yeah, that's an interesting question really. I suppose that's why the festival has to constantly evolve so that you keep it at the grassroots level. I do think however that musicians should have the golden ticket for attending the shows - unlimited access, yeah! I'm impressed to hear that it's going to be a "carbon neutral" event. We're doing our part by not driving down in our brown mansion this time either. That thing on its own contributed to 10 square blocks of heinous emissions, I'm sure.
BBQ or Tacos? Margaritas or beer? Parties or distro deal?
I think I'll have the tacos and margaritas this time. Beer makes me bloated and I did indulge overly with the BBQ last time. We'll do some parties for sure - we're facilitators of fun!
The Besnard Lakes will be playing SXSW at an undetermined time in an undisclosed venue.
