Lakes is the trading name of Melbourne punk freaknik Sean Bailey. This is his debut full length. It is a collection of briskly home-recorded distorted pop gems. The sound quality is wonderfully awful; it was recorded on a tape deck.
It has to be said that this is a pretty weird trip. Bailey’ songs seem to blurt out from deep within his psyche. Though he shares some common ground with noted homebodies Jandek and Ariel Pink, Bailey has really tapped into his own seam of lonely strung-out weirdness.
His modus operandi on most tracks seems pretty simple, he summons a pounding Phil Spector like beat from a musty old drum machine and overlays it with distorted organs and guitars. Most of the cuts feature Bailey’ vocals, which vary between unintelligible Ian Curtis spasms and straight up moaning. Track like “Xeros’ and “Cavern Song’ are genuinely spooky slabs of haunted house melancholy. The album’ poppiest moment is a cover of the Art Bears “Song Of Investment Capital Overseas’. Even on this track Bailey’ delivery is borderline psychopathic enough to ensure that it will pretty much never be played on the radio.
This is a uniquely thrilling record, but be warned, it is only for the brave.
