Lanterns on the Lake - Gracious Tide, Take Me Home (Bella Union)

Gracious Tide, Take Me Home is the debut album for Newcastle, England’s atmospheric folk quartet Lanters on the Lake, but you would be forgiven if you thought that what you were listening to was something older, something much more timeless. Lead singer Hazel Wilde has a voice that is dreamy, lulling, and comforting; it fits snugly over the band’s rainy-day, melancholic arrangements. Unfortunate comparisons will be made to Hope Sandoval, but she sings in an even softer, warmer, and comforting way, and the band doesn’t have too many Mazzy Star moments. To these ears, though, the band’s style much more comparable to Lambchop; they have six members who make a big sound that sounds utterly quiet. “Lungs Quicken” stars the set, with gentle strings and piano that are offset by a hushed, reserved electronic beat. It only gets dreamier from there; “The Places We Call Home” and “I Love You, Sleepyhead” are perfectly attuned to a rainy, cold autumn afternoon. Jaunty “A Kingdom” falls square in the middle of the record; its upbeat tempo might show that the band can make a song with more groove, but I suspect it is placed where it is as a tool to wake up potentially sleepy listeners! Gracious Tide, Take Me Home may not be a safe record to listen to while driving, but it’s the perfect record for relaxing once you get home.