Besnard Lakes — rock and roll at its chilling best

Not the first time the Besnard Lakes have been to town, but I can say with certainty that it was the best time. The Canadian indie-rock quartet has honed their skills to perform live a show that does justice to their records, songs that rely heavily on studio work.

Multi-instrumentalist/singers Jace Lasek and his wife Olga Goreas do a impressive job of harmonizing lyrics on the new album tracks, which are carried more by Goreas's lead vocals than by Jace's high-falsetto Beach Boys pitch. And the Lakes have learned where to stretch out the studio takes to elevate an audience to a new state.

Most of the songs on the set list had a shoegaze intro, slowly building to an explosive crescendo that was intensified by a barebones but effective light show — a few LEDs go a long way. Lasek, joking with the crowd, said, "There's too much smoke...can't see a thing...will have to fire our lighting guy... Wait, that's me!"

Cranking thru a best-of set from their past three albums, including “Albatross,” “Devastation,” and “The Specter,” the highlight of the show came during “46 Satires,” when Goreas sings, "The first day I saw you, sun came with the rain." Rock and roll at its chilling best.

• Concert: Besnard Lakes
• Date: November 17
• Venue: Casbah
• Seats: Stagefront