Grizzly Bear: "Yellow House" ('06)

So I'm off to Pitchfork Music Festival 2007 tomorrow, and I'm pretty fucking pumped. Though I've always thought Pitchfork has ignored some high quality indie bands and has a very pretentious bias towards the most arbitrarily-chosen groups ( They hate Dr. Dog & Kings of Leon. Huh?), they're not fuck-ups by any stretch. Though #1 album of last year may have been pushing it, I was very happy to see somebody recognizing The Knife and their "Silent Shout", as up to that point I had been the only one I knew who really enjoyed it. And I'd be lying if I said that they've never introduced me to any bands or that none of their reviews gave me any insight on a different view of the album. So, why the hell not? After all, it's all about the music.

And there are quite a few great bands in attendance: my new favorite DJ and hip-hop pioneer Girl Talk, the indescribably fun, bouncing-and-trekking rock outfit Battles (Check older posts for download/review), everyone's love affair whose albums contain more talent then they can contain, The New Pornographers, the chaotic, "if really cool 6 year olds got together this is the music they would make", "Drinking out of Cups" goof-ball Dan Deacon, and the eternally loved Canadians of Of Montreal. I'm even excited for Pitchfork-favorite, though over-hyped, Deerhunter.

Am I forgetting someone... Oh yes, my current musical obsession: Grizzly Bear.

I'll just come out and say it: I can't describe everything I love about Grizzly Bear. Aesthetically, the sound is so original and in such a chord that relaxes me into a lull with such a mind-invading beauty that can change mood more effectively then any death-metal bassists slamming away alongside a blood-curdling vocalist screaming with all the wrath of Thor the Thunder God behind him. Grizzly's beautiful vocals compliment the sound with such incredible cohesion that they sound as if they're just another instrument under the control of some great creator, and apparently I'm not the only one who catches themselves singing it.

Descarga aqui.

P.S.- If you do really dig this album, don't bother with the "La cite des enfants perdus"/"Yellow House" crossover (Ala "Wizard of Oz"/ Pink Floyd's "Darkside of the Moon"). I'm a fan of Jean-Pierre Jeunet's film as well, and I tried this multiple times, all to yield only a similar atmosphere and a few thoughts on how the film could have been cut to "Yellow House". Pretty much it. A few other people I've asked have tried as well, to no avail of course. Sad, but I guess its just one more of these lame crossovers that fell through when put up to actual tests (the worst ever being Terry Gilliam's "12 Monkeys" and Radiohead's "O.K. Computer").

Video: "Knife"


Also, count on photo-coverage of Pitchfork. The festival started today, I didn't go as I don't have as big a hard-on for Sonic Youth, and Slint isn't worth going all the way to the city to see exclusively. I'll be there Saturday and Sunday.