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Grizzly Bear

Yellow House

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Review

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by Merlin on 10/25/2006

I can’t help but to be cautious when a band is as incredibly lauded as Grizzly Bear has been over the last month. After all, I did buy the Tapes N’ Tapes album on a whim for Christ’s sake. That hoax has finally been explained in an expose on TNT’s seemingly magical rise to King Shit of Indie Mountain. See for yourself.

I’ve been burned by blog hype more than once, I’m afraid to admit. Dropping nearly 20 bucks on a bad record always leaves a bad taste in the mouth. I guess I should blame myself for not sniffing out more MP3’s in those cases. But sometimes you just pop into the record store convinced that you can’t leave empty handed.

Now, I can’t say I was entirely unprepared when I snatched up Yellow House. I had heard “Knife.” And although its complete beauty wouldn’t fully hit me until it washed out of my stereo speakers at top volume (as opposed to headphones on my computer), I still wasn’t entirely sold. But, it did seem like a pretty safe bet.

The first few times I heard this record I was cooking, cleaning, or just generally not paying attention. I’m not sure when it happened, but at some point it lodged its pretty little self in my brain and I needed to hear it. There wasn’t a particular song I was pining for; it was just the hazy atmosphere I was seeking. The songs that make up Yellow House aren’t entirely complicated in structure, but the execution is completely brilliant in its sophistication. The instrumentation and interweaving melodies of the songs display the work of highly skilled musicians experimenting with sound without sacrificing melody or song.

“Knife” ranks among the best songs of the year so far—if not the best. The song’s pyramid structure is capped by a hook so sharp it’s dangerous. The sound is completely new and old, familiar and unusual at the same time—seemingly of its own era. Other highlights include album opener, “Easier,” the epic “On A Neck, On A Spit,” and album closer “Colorado.” But Yellow House is really a complete work worth listening to in its entirety. This is an album that will out-live its hype—a hype that’s been completely justified.

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