Grizzly Bear - Yellow House

Echoes

We've grown to believe that the indie world is so pure that even its criticism is unaffected. But judging by the amount of acclaimed music I dislike almost to a protestant degree, I've come to conclusion that the inevitable is true: overrated music exists everywhere, regardless of popularity. I listened to "Yellow House" with disbelief, mostly due to not understanding the reasons for the existence of its high stature.

It's a shame, though, because Grizzly Bear aren't the bad guys here. They are nowhere near unlistenable and repulsive as the indie-[insert the genre here] pioneers Animal Collective. The vocals on "Yellow House" can be quite mesmerizing (the "I know, I know" of the warm, uplifting record opener and "what now? Colorado" of the excellent closer demand singing along) mostly because the boys know how to hit the right notes, albeit being somewhat modest or, dare I say, ashamed of their abilities.

Where "Yellow House" falls flat is its instrumental constitution--autoharp and banjo are among my favorite instruments (and basically what got me interested in the record), but they aren't put to good use here. They have everything from clarinet to keyboards, but they're not a talented bunch, so the rich instrumentation doesn't add up to anything. Excuse my profanity, but jerking off in the studio does not make for a good listening experience.

"Each day spend it with me now" is the pivotal stop on the record because it sums it up so well--it's the echoes you hear among all this noise. Unfortunately, the echoes aren't strong enough to hold "Yellow House" together and it ends as a disappointing piece of music. Just think of all the truly talented people that create music in God-knows-what-kind-of-a-trench and never get a chance to work for a label and Warp Records takes a shot with these guys?

On some level, "Yellow House" shows promise, but it remains painfully unfulfilled. Chrises, Edward and Daniel aren't cut out to be musicians and they have to come to terms with that. Don't fool yourself into thinking that you're doing something wrong because you can't see the emperor's clothes for he isn't wearing any. September 24, 2008

I hope I am forced to recant someday

I just downloaded the entire album yesterday on the strength of these (at the time 27) reviews totaling somewhere in the neighborhood of 4.5 stars and a similar glowing review from pitchfork and I am amazed. Amazed at how little I enjoyed any of the murky, formless cacophonous blobs on this record. I would have given it 2 stars because a couple of tracks, Easier, central and remote perhaps show potential of being good or great songs if they were worked on some more, but I feel it neccessary to bring down the overall rating as much as possible so someone else has less chance of making the same mistake as me. just putting words to music in a certain order does not make a song. the words are very sparse, and get drowned out in the expansive, discordant nothingness of these songs . You can't really single out one track from another, you would never hear any of these on the radio, you would never put one of these on a mix for a friend, because they are meaningless sonic experiments, apparently. the equivalent of abstract art in music, the bad kind of abstract art the kind your dog or 4 year old could do, I mean. not random, just devoid of sense. don't go for a ride with grizzy bear if you like music for harmony or songcraft or even the writing, like me. it will be a meal with nothing to chew. July 28, 2008

Grandmothers House

The majority of this album (with the exception of 3 songs) has that nostalgic feel to it, almost as if you were taken back to the past to a better time, when visiting your relatives and cousins was something to really get excited about, when everyone was around, and everyone was in good health and in the best of spirits. When your mindset was totally free of negativity. When the only thing on your mind was going outside to play, all day until sunset.

What i feel when listening to this cannot really be described though, it's just one of those albums you feel on a deeply personal level. The opening piano of "Easier" sounds like something you would hear off of a really old record, and it being danced to by some old people.

"On a Neck On a Spit", what an intro, guitars seamlessly blend into one other creating an opening of epic proportions. The song goes on a journey down memory lane with some very nice guitar work and building into psychedelic folk freak out which in my mind can really only be compared to a slightly toned down version of animal collective. He's not violently shreaking, but his voice progressively gets louder. 5/5

"Lullabye" is a lullabye at first, but then develops into an amazing jam complete with so many wailing instruments it will make your head spin. In the midst of the madness: "chin up, cheer up, chin up, cheer up, chin up over and over until you are convinced that the best thing is to keep your head up through it all "my loves another kind" he says as the song closes out. Incredible song. 5/5

"Knife" has a dab of Beach Boys. such a smooth, laid back little ditty. the type of song you'd want to play at night speeding down a country road with the windows down. A clear your mind type of tune. 5/5

when i hear "Little Brother" i am reminded of Elliott Smith guitar, very dynamic, methodical type of playing. Beautiful ending with some birds chirping in the background 4.5/5

"Marla" starts out really creepy and haunting, and engulfed in darkness. It breaks through and sees the light at about the 1:53 mark, turns creepy again for awhile. A slower song, with some weird "yelps" in the background, almost as if you were stuck in a dark winter forest and you heard wolves in the distance.

"Reprise" wields a banjo, and echoes the sentiments of lullabye with "my loves another kind" some nice work here.

"Colorado" perhaps the best out of the bunch, reminds me of being on a snow capped mountain, or in the wilderness. the song starts to reach a climax, where everything blends together perfectly and the question is asked, "what now?" Almost as if he is removed completely from everything and doesn't know what to do. Such a beautiful tragedy, lol sounds like an emo band, but it's anything but. 6/5

With the exception of two or 3 songs, this album is perfect. It's such a diverse collection of sounds and it takes awhile for it's beauty and charm to sink in. Colorado will hit immediately, some of the rest might take some time. I listen to the songs almost daily, because they each have so much to offer in terms of instruments and sound to fill your mind. It's great to fall asleep to, to reflect on, to cheer you up, or to jam out to. i'll give it 5 stars just because the highs outweigh the lows by a lot.


March 27, 2008

Biased Review

Grizzly Bear may sound like the name of a band that should have heavy parts and a mean sound, but maybe instead the name just matches the powerful vibes and feelings that they can only give. They are respected by the modern musicians of our time because they have created their own unique sound while still using influences that are so familiar. Each song on "Yellow House" is a beautiful little masterpiece....I couldn't say one bad or negative thing about any sound on this album. I think one of my favorite things on this album is the higher "Beach Boys" type harmonies that the drummer pulls off. I think this will be my favorite band for good remainder of my life.. March 3, 2008

"What Now?"

Grizzly Bear might sound like the name of a metal band, but they're really folksy acoustic indie rock. If you ever watch Adult Swim, you'd probably recognize a few moments from some of their commercials, and that's sometimes a decent encapsulation of their sound - catchy songs that are friendly but often with a slightly strange atmosphere. They can sound very simple and at the same time have complex arrangements, with normal rock instruments, traditional sounds like flutes, and electronic additions. It's a little hard to describe what's appealing about Yellow House, but whatever it is, it's there.

"Easier" starts with some simple atmospherics, adds some piano, and then works its way into a plucked guitar melody and high pitched vocalization accompanying. Drums and other elements are thrown on top, and the sound rounds out into a fully developed, well-chosen first track. Subsequent songs develop in a similar fashion, all sounding cohesive and yet having enough of their own flavor to sustain themselves without ever dragging. There's often a lot of shifts in tempo and sound within single tracks, and the surplus of ideas is quite evident. The closer, "Colorado" lurches into the distance with a resonating, slow drum beat and piano part which segue into and a collection of different instruments and styles with a simple, repeated melancholy chorus of "What now?" Hopefully, the creation of another solid album. February 17, 2008

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