Tim: No lockdown in Sweden, so Galantis have got themselves a 15-piece orchestra for this one – apparently they’ve got other music ready to go, but this one felt right for the time.
Tom: Huh. Orchestral Galantis sounds like a wonderful idea.
Tim: “I wanted to release something different. Some people said: ‘Everyone wants to be happy,’ but I thought: ‘I need to feel it. I don’t want a big drop right now,'” said Christian, to Popjustice last week.
Tom: I mean, it’s uncomfortably reminiscent of Clean Bandit — that is not a compliment, I am not a Clean Bandit fan — but it’s interesting to see that “sudden appearance of an orchestra” still sorta-qualifies as a drop.
Tim: And yeah, I like that, because to be honest I don’t want a big drop right now either – to get briefly personal, the one time I’ve felt properly down during this whole thing was when guys from work wanted suggestions for a workout playlist and I listened to a load of dance music to find stuff, and it turns out I really do miss going out to bars and clubs and having fun. The titular lake is allegedly a metaphor for that – it’s for whatever we’re looking forward to, getting out, hanging out, doing whatever, though that kind of brings the question: with these lyrics, is the timing really right for this? Shouldn’t it maybe have been held back until there is a house on the lake? I don’t know, maybe it’s just there as a dream, as something to look forward to, to feel wistful about. I’ll take the music, though. The music’s nice.
Tom: It is! I don’t think the birdsong works in there — it’s just a bit too twee. But then, I tend to disparage basically any sound effect in a song, so perhaps I’m just too easily distracted. As a nice, calm Galantis track: yes, I’m glad to see that combining dance music with an orchestra still works.
Tim: It does. And incidentally, if you’re in the market for a Galantis face mask, one can be yours for just £15 plus £2.90 shipping to the UK, which actually works out a bargain compared to Alan Walker – his are a bit cheaper, but he’ll charge you over a tenner for shipping. Disgraceful.