Folk/Rock - Like fellow Ontarion (Ontarionian?) Neil Young, Great Lake Swimmers' Tony Dekker imbues his music with a sense of history. Which is not to say that Dekker sounds like Young - a better sonic reference point would be Iron and Wine - but that he shares Young's affinity for open spaces, storied places, and the aura of myth that surrounds the past. Much of Lost Channels was recorded in historic locations in the Thousand Islands region of the Saint Lawrence River, and the album reflects - sonically and lyrically -  the mystery and majesty of the region. From the band's site:

"The title of the album is a reference to a certain passage of the St. Lawrence, close to the recording locale, where a reconnaissance boat from a British warship went mysteriously missing in 1760. There’s no specific reference to the incident in the lyrics, though there are plenty of night skies, howling winds and raging rivers in almost every song which captures an elusive sense of mystery."

Lost Channels is the group's most dynamic album to date, beefing up the uber-spare arrangements and plodding tempos that characterized their first three LPs and sometimes made them... well, boring. No molds are shattered here, but a wider variety are used, and the more developed, rock-thinking arrangements are just what was needed to realize the group's potential. Tony Dekker is undoubtedly a good singer and a competent songwriter, but until this album he has not shown himself to be a risk-taker. Fortunately, in this case the risks are met with rewards.

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