Velour On Tap Turns Atlantic Decay Into Indie Gold on "Hourglass Lake Ahead"

Velour On Tap offers vivid stories told with warm guitars and dischord pop charm.

Velour On Tap is the bookish indie-rock project of Halifax singer-songwriter Ian D. Brimacombe.

Brimacombe has spent 30 years singing about the gritty and beautiful corners of Montreal, London, Chicago and Atlantic Canada, appearing alongside Bran Van 3000 and The Dears, partnering up with members of Tunng and UNKLE, building a silent but textured musical dynasty along the way.

With Cruel Harbour, he brings that mighty land behind the sea to life with poetic, melodic songs of atmospheric grit and emotional truth.

'Hourglass Lake Ahead' is the type of indie-rock song that immediately worms its way into your veins.

The jangling guitars gleam with an economy of insistence, while the consistent rhythm segment keeps everything relaxed and completely flowing. This is what makes Ian D. Brimacombe's songwriting striking, sophisticated and soul-scraping without a hint of pride. He speaks about the psychogeography of Atlantic Canada, its stark poverty contrasting with its wealth, its dying villages circling the 1700s, its biting beauty as a window rather than a topic. Lakeside weariness, roadside deterioration and Gulf coast isolation paint an expansion that is both monumental and private. Channelling the melody-inflicted dissonance present within early-90s Halifax underground, the song made use of its adornment with balance and poise. Good writing with too much thought out on its face, too much atmosphere and too much image. More tracks are awaited, and they are worth waiting for.