Grizzly Bear is a very unique indie folk band - Ed Droste, Daniel Rossen, Christopher Bear, and Chris Taylor are very talented multi-instrumentalists, and when they harmonize, man does it sound beautiful. Many are familiar with their 2009 album Veckatimest from the success of the lead single “Two Weeks,” however they first broke onto the scene with their incredible 2007 album Yellow House.
Yellow House is one of those albums in which the cover perfectly resembles its sound. The acoustics of the instrumentation sound as if they were recorded in a dusty autumn home. The songs themselves aren’t bright or sharp by any means. They’re rather quite measured and subdued, their tone reflecting that of the dim lighting. The record’s sound is really warm, but features a very subtle, cold undertone. The attic similarly appears warm and inviting, but the set of creaky stairs leading up to the attic add the forbidding sentiment to the room. Grizzly Bear doesn’t sound like your average indie band on Yellow House. The band sprinkles in a lot of baroque instrumentation, accompanied by traditional guitars. The subtle passages from the flute, violin, xylophone, and piano add a lot to the atmosphere. The amount of detail each song features in its full instrumentation is actually remarkable, considering the band is only a quartet. On a first listen, a traditional ear may only warm up to songs like “The Knife” and “On a Neck, on a Spit,” each which have pretty recognizable refrains and prominent guitar leads. “Little Brother” is another attention grabber, with its intricate guitar intro, and chilling vocal walk down at the 2:20 mark. There are intricately woven crescendos within these three tracks, and the shifts from the mellow lowpoints to the powerful highpoints of the tracks display Grizzly Bear’s unique take on songwriting structure. “Easier” is a perfect opener to the record. I absolutely love the woodwinds and distant piano at the beginning of the track. Once the vocals enter the mix, they seemingly bounce back and forth between the softly plucked guitar chords. A banjo nicely compliments the guitar as the song progresses, and the arpeggios from the xylophone towards the end wrap up the song fittingly. “Lullabye” opens as if it were indeed one itself, as Droste and Roseen harmonize backed by a dreamy keyboard and fluttering woodwinds. The song surprisingly builds to one of the records most climactic moments, featuring one of the most memorable one-liners (“my love’s another kind”). The intensified instrumental of the build-up is as extravagant and layered as the quieter moments on this song. “Reprise” returns to the aforementioned one-liner, but brings together a completely different instrumental. Somehow, Grizzly Bear manage to make the banjo sound like the most capable instrument of communicating sorrow. The end of the track further displays Grizzly Bear’s perfection of vocal harmonization. “Marla” is perhaps the eeriest track, as Droste barely whispers over the instrumental, primarily composed of a lumbering piano. “Plans” plays to the same vein as “Lullabye” with its crescendo, but the drums are recorded entirely differently. It’s almost as if the percussion entails that the entire house is creaking and shaking as the song reaches its apex. Eleven years after its release, Yellow House still stands as one of the most essential records in the indie sphere, and serves as a great introduction to Grizzly Bear. Listening to this record really is an experience like no other, and I’d recommend it to any fan of indie, rock, or folk music.
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