Great Lake
Great Statue is not an overt oversharer but an obsessional one; that is, they’d never own up to their own exhibitionism … but a Statue is, after all, there to be looked at. Their certain streak for confessional lyricism runs wild in this EP of 9 tracks, circa 2018, though the Statue doesn’t lose their glossy pop-star cliches either. The third of four EPs in their outrageous debut offering, Great Lake is like a one night stand with the Statue herself, where intimacy is tarnished (or electrified?) by unfamiliarity.
At either end of this generously long EP, we find ourselves so close to the stony facade that we are almost within it. A Woman Walking shares tender (if at times irreverent) reflections on young womanhood, and The sunlight in Matsumoto barely reaches the water is a fragile compilation of fragments so personal, it’s as if they were overheard accidentally. In these moments, we realise a Statue would sooner shatter than bend. But sandwiched in between these vulnerable tracks is the far more propulsive house feel of Geminian and the elusive party anthem Taurean. Indulgent pitched vox scatter themselves over inexplicable earworms. Colorado Grip goes hard. We almost forget what the stone exterior felt like to the touch in this wave of weird dancefloor energy (WDE).
For a long time there was sand and dirt and tidal movements and later there were living things like human animals and indie pop and later still there were other things; things like stain-remover-sticks and things like hopeless devotion and then, finally; there a Great Statue appeared. She was uplifted (though she stood upon no pedestal) so that everyone need raise their chins and their eyes became the glowing orbs of upturned stage lights. In the shadow of the Statue, glamour and garbage collided in a flailing battle of wills, lofi and hifi were in a flirtatious punch-up, dumb drum machines popped their heads above grainy field recordings, and cheesy samples oozed over up-close lyricism. The watchers-on stood dumbstruck by awe, and the Statue maintained perfect composure amongst the perfect maelstrom they had set in motion.
Great Statue
A halo of light emanated from her silhouette, and swirling in the smoke appeared letters as if etched into stone:
THE GREAT STATUE ARRIVES BEARING GIFTS OF THEIR OWN MAKING. THEIR FIRST APPEARANCE IN THE DIGITAL REALM WILL BE CELEBRATED ACROSS THE FIRST MONTH OF THE YEAR TWENTY-TWENTY-THREE (2023) PUNCTUATED BY THE RELEASE OF FOUR (4) EXTENDED PLAYS (EPs) ON BOORLOO (PERTH) LABEL ROCKTON RECORDS. EACH OFFERING SHALL BE PRESENTED ONE WEEK APART, COMMENCING JANUARY 10 AND CONCLUDING JANUARY 31. ACCOMPANYING THE TOTAL OF NINETEEN (19) HOT NEW TRACKS WILL BE ONE (1) MUSIC VIDEO PRODUCED IN COLLABORATION WITH LOCAL FAIRY-GIRL BADDIES EMMA DAISY AND LYNDON BLUE. AS THE FINAL GIFT, THE STATUE HERSELF WILL APPEAR FOR AN EVENING OF IMPASSIONED MOTION AND CHEAP DRAMATIC LIGHTING ON FRIDAY FEBRUARY 3 AT PIG MELON ALONGSIDE LOCAL STALWARTS BUCKLAND AND DJs DOUG & ALANA.