Blood of the Grove is set to be one of the most interesting records in Lakes’ catalog, marking as it does a shift between Lakes as one-man band and Lakes as power trio. Last year’s Spring Torch live cassette captured Sean Bailey’s songwriting in this new incarnation and showed a lot of promise, but ‘Painted Wreath’ – the first taster from Blood of the Grove – is the first proper evidence of what the LP itself will sound like – and it’s very promising. The cover art above it amazing too.

Blood of the Grove will release July 1 through No Patience in Australia and North America, and AVANT! in Europe.