Hello, I wish to speak to you today about...
Grizzly Bear.
No, not those large brown mammals that inhabit North America, but the band, also from North America - Brooklyn to be precise. Man, what is it about Brooklyn that makes all the most awesome bands and musicians come from there? It's like what people try to say Perth is but for real. And 1000 times cooler. Perth, c'mon - I love ya - I love your style and I love your musicians. Some I perhaps love a little more than's really healthy, but seriously dude - you're no Brooklyn.
Anyway, back to Grizzly Bear, and their third album Veckatimest.
Sorry about that promotional sticker down the bottom there, but I must impart to you how great this album is. This album is seriously kicking my ass with it's awesomeness right now.
I know what you're saying. You're saying "Oh, yeah OK, some weird obscuro thing - yeah - we know YOUR taste in music ya big snobby experimental wanker." Fair enough too. But hold up a second. This is not an experimental record. It's an album of SONGS, by FOUR DUDES, who play INSTRUMENTS, and there's SINGING on it, and none of the songs is longer than like five minutes tops!
Grizzly Bear's previous album was Yellow House - it was a spacious folk rock record and it had some beautiful and haunting moments on it. But for this new album they've really stepped it up. It's brilliant in a way very few albums are. Every track on this sucker has at least one moment of cloudbusting pop perfection. After having listened to it about six or seven times I find myself waiting for particular moments and then revelling in them when they happen. I haven't been as excited about an album since Sunset Rubdown's Random Spirit Lover of a couple of years ago.
I don't know what will happen to Grizzly Bear. I don't know if this will be the album that breaks them. It should be, but you know how fickle pop audiences are. This band deserve for the ears of the world to hear them, but of course you never know what people will dig and what they won't. I don't know if this is going to be one of those albums that just kind of galvanises people and pretty much everyone likes, like, I dunno - The Shins' Chutes Too Narrow for example. Perhaps this is a more obtuse record - it's a grower, and requires at least two or three listens to really sink in. But once it does, whoo boy! My gushiness is evidence of the results.
I'm stopping short of a full review here because I have actually written a review for Drum Media, which will be in print soon. But I just wanted to tell you how enchanted I am by this record right now, and indulge in that. It's so nice when this happens with a record, so I just wanted to share.
No, not those large brown mammals that inhabit North America, but the band, also from North America - Brooklyn to be precise. Man, what is it about Brooklyn that makes all the most awesome bands and musicians come from there? It's like what people try to say Perth is but for real. And 1000 times cooler. Perth, c'mon - I love ya - I love your style and I love your musicians. Some I perhaps love a little more than's really healthy, but seriously dude - you're no Brooklyn.
Anyway, back to Grizzly Bear, and their third album Veckatimest.
Sorry about that promotional sticker down the bottom there, but I must impart to you how great this album is. This album is seriously kicking my ass with it's awesomeness right now.
I know what you're saying. You're saying "Oh, yeah OK, some weird obscuro thing - yeah - we know YOUR taste in music ya big snobby experimental wanker." Fair enough too. But hold up a second. This is not an experimental record. It's an album of SONGS, by FOUR DUDES, who play INSTRUMENTS, and there's SINGING on it, and none of the songs is longer than like five minutes tops!
Grizzly Bear's previous album was Yellow House - it was a spacious folk rock record and it had some beautiful and haunting moments on it. But for this new album they've really stepped it up. It's brilliant in a way very few albums are. Every track on this sucker has at least one moment of cloudbusting pop perfection. After having listened to it about six or seven times I find myself waiting for particular moments and then revelling in them when they happen. I haven't been as excited about an album since Sunset Rubdown's Random Spirit Lover of a couple of years ago.
I don't know what will happen to Grizzly Bear. I don't know if this will be the album that breaks them. It should be, but you know how fickle pop audiences are. This band deserve for the ears of the world to hear them, but of course you never know what people will dig and what they won't. I don't know if this is going to be one of those albums that just kind of galvanises people and pretty much everyone likes, like, I dunno - The Shins' Chutes Too Narrow for example. Perhaps this is a more obtuse record - it's a grower, and requires at least two or three listens to really sink in. But once it does, whoo boy! My gushiness is evidence of the results.
I'm stopping short of a full review here because I have actually written a review for Drum Media, which will be in print soon. But I just wanted to tell you how enchanted I am by this record right now, and indulge in that. It's so nice when this happens with a record, so I just wanted to share.