Giving & Receiving

by LAKE

Overview

While recording their third album, Giving & Receiving, the Olympia, WA band LAKE had a bit of a problem. The analog tape they were recording on began to disintegrate, threatening the project and forcing a switch to digital recording. Since part of the reason for recording on tape is the desire to capture a feeling of warmth, the group feared the loss of that intangible quality after the switch-over. They shouldn't have worried, because the record is just as warm, rich, and layered with soft soul as their previous efforts. The way the voices mix together, the blend of old keyboards, gently strummed guitars, the pleasing array of horns, percussion, and bells that weave through the mix, all join together to make the trademark sound of LAKE with no digital interference. Listening to the album on headphones, it feels like the band is right there in the room with you, surrounding you with their low-key beauty. With the sound sorted out, the next place to look is the songwriting, and the main duo of Eli Moore and Ashley Eriksson turn in a batch of intimate and searching songs that look deep into their lives and at the world, natural and manmade, around them. Eriksson has the kind of soothing voice that can make the tragic line "there used to be fish in the ocean" sound like a sweet lullaby, she floats through her songs with a grace and strength that contrast well with Moore's quietly fragile vocals. They sound just right singing together, and when the whole band (and their assorted friends) chime in, they get a nice, full, and somewhat haunting chorus sound going. This album isn't a great leap ahead for LAKE in terms of quality, since the previous two records were also very good, but it does show them improving and refining their sound to the point of perfection. It also may not be the kind of record that will get them all kinds of buzz and acclaim, but if you take a chance on it, after a few listens, you'll be holding on to Giving & Receiving like you were Linus and it was your security blanket. ~ Tim Sendra

Product Details

Release Date:	04/12/2011
Label:	K Records
UPC:	0789856122813
Rank:	104262

Tracks

1. Intro
2. One Small Step
3. Roger Miller
4. Within/Without
5. The Stars
6. Stumble Around
7. Giving & Receiving
8. Mother Nature's Promise
9. Skeleton Costume
10. The Bird and the Berry
11. Interlude
12. Pilgrim's Day
13. Efforts
14. Distant Stars

Album Credits

Performance Credits

LAKE   Primary Artist
Grant Cross   Wurlitzer
Kyle Durkee   Trumpet
Lindsay Schief   Bass,Drums,Vocal Group
Karl Blau   Saxophone,Percussion
R. Stevie Moore   Voices
Paul Benson   Vocals (Background)
Adam Oelsner   Bass,Guitar,Keyboards
Stephanie Schief   Vocal Group
Ben Kamen   Synthesizer,Vocal Group
Eli Moore   Bass,Guitar,Vocals,Keyboards
Markly Morrison   Bass,Guitar,Keyboards,Vocal Group
Andrew Dorsett   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Keyboards,Percussion,Vocal Group
Bill Kautz   Horn
Bob Schwenkler   Vocal Group
Ashley Eriksson   Bass,Guitar,Vocals,Timpani,Keyboards
Olympia Free Choir   Vocals
Eric Valley   Trombone
Eric Vanderbilt-Matthews   Saxophone
Kevin Shintaku   Trombone

Technical Credits

Lindsay Schief   Group Member
Rick Fisher   Mastering
Karl Blau   Mixing,Engineer
Calvin Johnson   Engineer
Eli Moore   Mixing,Engineer,Group Member
Markly Morrison   Group Member
Andrew Dorsett   Group Member
E. Moore   Composer
Bob Schwenkler   Technical Assistance
Sarah Cass   Band Photo,Photography
Ashley Eriksson   Group Member
Ben Hargett   Liner Notes,Technical Assistance
Erin Eriksson   Photography
Joe Menthe   Cover Photo