No secret we’ve been excited about this one for awhile. And as the band blogged, it’s no secret that a transcode of the album is burning up torrent sites a bit earlier than anticipated. On the other hand, between live shows and television appearances, the wait for a Yellow House followup’s seemed interminable, Grizzly Bear’s pre-release maneuvering and gradual song reveals setting expectations impossibly high. “Two Weeks” and “While You Wait For The Others” suggested a marked turn to sun-dappled pop; every song we heard thereafter fucked with those expectations while giving them dimension. Before this week we’d heard enough to know it’d be pretty great. After a few spins of Veckatimest, we’ve heard enough to know this is the band’s best album to date, and that people won’t talk about them the same way after hearing it. Put simply: The new Grizzly Bear is a beast.
With sounds so rich and detailed, lyrics aren’t the first thing you think of when listening to Grizzly Bear, although there does seem to be a theme running through most of Veckatimest. At its heart, it’s an album about the space and place between loved ones, which the band alludes to quite literally: “In the end you’ll never find … Will I return to you, will you return to me” (on the opening “Southern Point”); “I told you I would stay” (“Two Weeks”); “I can’t get out of what I’m into with you” (“All We Ask”); “If it’s all or nothing, then let me go” (“Fine For Now”); “They’ll try to keep us apart” (“I Live With You”); and on. Relationships make an about face, they hold still, they linger in the foreground. So it makes some sense that the album’s titled after a place-out-of-time unto itself, while possessing a syllabic string that conjures something of the album’s sound: mood-spanning, fantastical, and otherworldly.
That said, the set does contain the unabashedly straightforward pop cuts in “Two Weeks” and “While You Wait For The Others.” Not much needs to be said about those considering the amount of hypertext that’s been served in their honor already, but it’s worth noting that the studio was good to both. Grizzly’s previous foray into the realm of the “pop jam,” “Knife,” was appended with a minute-and-a-half of surreal vamping; this time the band kept their insta-pleasers clean, vibrant, and succinct. If radios were still a thing that existed, they totally wouldn’t need to make radio edits. (Also, Beach House’s Victoria LeGrand on “Two Weeks” is a nice touch.)
On first hearing “Fine For Now” we realized the band was working on some knottier pieces to accompany the previously discussed cuts’ sunny poptimism, and indeed the remaining ten tracks defy any such easy characterization, incorporating elements of Yellow House‘s avant folk and compositional complexities and taking them to new realms. “Southern Point” opens and announces the revamp of the Yellow House template with its acoustic guitars, pianos, and runaway drums matched to snatches of scene-coloring strings and billowing into a pretty/anxious wah-wah blizzard. Moments like these pop up throughout, but the approach is more dynamic and song-oriented than before.
In a Progress Report, Ed said “With past releases there have been small regrets of how we would have preferred things and I think this time we are just covering all the bases and making sure every member of the band has exhausted all the ideas and concepts they’ve wanted to explore.” That attention to detail and conceptual exploration is evident in every minute of Veckatimest, from the subtle interplay between Nico Muhly’s tasteful string quartet arrangements and Chris Taylor’s equally experimental production ticks (check the delirious climax of “I Live With You”), to the group’s instrumental and four-part vocal arrangements throughout.
The band’s shown interest in older sounds before, notably with their covers of the 1962 Crystals cut “He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss)” and “Marla,” a 1930s song by Droste’s great-great-aunt, and both eras get work here: “Cheerleader” builds on nostalgic melodies and a lockstep groove in the vein of their “He Hit Me” arrangement, while the stunning “Ready, Able” is an intermittently psychedelic, rousing and grooving pull on victrola-era pop. Picking standouts is tough when its clear songs like “Dory” and “I Live With You” are as much meant to be slow-bloomers as character builders, but immediate standouts abound: in addition to those mentioned (“Cheerleader,” “Fine For Now,” “Two Weeks,” “Ready, Able,” “While You Wait,”), tack on the delicate and chiming “About Face” and the fragile, set-closing torch song “Foreground,” a perfect ending to an intimate yet expansive, sprawling pop album.
Grizzly Bear remain a band as interested in exploring traditional and contemporary American music forms as they are subverting them. Most of the talk around this record will center on its status as an of-the-year contender, and rightly so. But more importantly, we have a work from a band continuously defying expectations, pushing back boundaries and chipping into well worn tropes to find something new. For Grizzly Bear Veckatimest is a game changer, and a cause for celebration.
Veckatimest is out 5/26 via Warp. Preorder on the Grizzly blog. It’s big with the kids.
You Might Also Like
 Album Of The Week: Grizzly Bear Shields |  What Grizzly Bear’s Been Up To Since Veckatimest |  Turntable Interview: Grizzly Bear |  Watch Daniel Rossen Cover “Hang Me, Oh Hang Me” |
 |
 |
Leave a Reply
Sign in Sign in with FacebookYou must be logged in to post, reply to, or rate a comment.
you really do evaluate these albums quickly, I just thought premature evaluation was just a witty title.
You don’t need to spend more then a day with this to know it’s a good album.
this album deserves any and all praise it gets
i didn’t buy the new animal collective and i won’t be buying this. fuck BOTH these bands! :)
sounds like deliberate anti-consumerism to the point that even popular indie music is WAY TOO POPULAR FOR YOU.
you’re so punk rock.
amen.
Finally an album who’s hype I can stand behind. Fucking magnificent. Nice write up too. Dory is particularly lovely to me.
Dory is abolutely one of my favorite’s as well.
But it’s hard to pick any favorite. Each song is so dynamic and different and all worth while. It’s a truly incredible record from four incrdedibly talented guys. Blows me away whenever I even think about how far they’ve come, yet in such a small span of time. This is their second album as a fourpiece? Incredible. They’re totally here to stay.
TOO SOON
if they’re not in a feud with someone, i’m not buying it.
amen
Wonderful.
Too soon or not, this is such an accurate write-up. Grizzly Bear HAVE changed the game with this record. They didn’t just raise the bar. They put the bar on a rocket and launched it into space. There are so many moments throughout where I become so overwhelmed by the creativity and beauty put into this that I can’t help but grin from ear to ear – or even laugh. At first I thought, okay, this is a great record – they’ve done it again. Now that I’ve spent more time with it, I truly believe it will go down as a classic. And it hasn’t even been released yet! Can’t wait to get my grubby paws on the vinyl of this. For me, 2009 is yours GB, and nobody else’s.
totally well said :)
Like the Jonas Bros waiting to punch kitty, I’m gonna try to hold off on this album. This write-up, though, makes it a little more difficult
cave, its totally worth it
not as good as mpp
before you downvote me, look into your heart, you know it to be true
My heart says MPP has 2 great songs and that Veckatimest 12.
This is that one rare album that contains so much pleasure, that it actually deserves the alluded pun of ‘premature evaluation.’
A band and effort truly deserving of the praise they get. Good for them. I can only pray that they keep making music together for a long time.
I don’t downvote you because it is true. They’re both beasts but MPP is better.
And don’t say there’s no need for a comparison because there should be. These are the only two bands anyone talks about anymore.
Can’t we just love both albums and stop the pissing contest???
Not as long as Pitchfork exists. God damn, I fucking hate Pitchfork.
you’re right. we should make comparisons, so that we can argue about it, come to no conclusion, wait for year ends lists, hate them, and argue about it again.
you’re a weiner andrew.
Awww…
and now i like you
this album has everything that is good about music somewhere in its 52 minutes.
also, what does this have to do with Animal Collective?
Grizz in my pants
Part of me is sad that I’ve already found my album of the year as it’s only March. The other part of me is so so happy.
Everywhere I go people are talking about Grizzly Bear and I’m strangely OK with it.
I used to be only mildly disappointed they weren’t playing Coachella. After hearing this album I’m one bitter little bitch.
Where are all the haters? Where’s the Ed Droste impersonator ??? WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?!?!?!?!
Top 3 albums of modern time:
1. Van Morrison ‘Astral Weeks’
2. The Velvet Underground ‘Velvet Underground & Nico’
3. Grizzly Bear ‘Veckatimest’
This is one for the history books.
I PEE GOLD JUST TOOK IT SOMEWHERE INTENSE
would it be crazy if i agree that it’s probably up there? i mean we can tell it’s clearly insanely good right?
Agreed.
I realize its not for everyone, but that’s just my opinion.
Oh did you miss me? I only kid. I’m just Ed Droste’s impersonator’s impersonator. He’s away on vacation at Veckatimest Island.
It is better to debate a question without settling it than to settle a question without debating it…..basically its healthy and necessary to compare and debate mmp and veckatimest even if we don’t come to sound conclusion..
also, just to start shit, grizzly bear is better than mmj and fleet foxes combined!!!
Judging by “Colorado” and “Foreground,” Grizzly Bear are the undisputed king of incredible album closers.
It’s exciting to see people excited about great music. When I grew up everyone was listening to Cake and Matchbox 20. Times sure have changed, (or maybe I just moved and grew up)
Speaking of which, Matchbox 20 is working on a new album
YESSSS! I CAN”T WAIT FOR SASQUATCH!!!!!!!!
the backdrop of The Gorge paired with the untouchable soundscapes of the Grizz… RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE EXTREEEEME
Hallelujah, and also, jizzzzz!
very solid album….but still something about it is not the celebration i wish it was….. mpp and its blitz play better front to back than this.
That’s OK Jbean, you like more upbeat albums. Those are totally different.
Why oh WHY must bands announce new albums have been completed and then release them 3 months later?? We get excited, climax, and then when it actually comes out… eh.
press lead time is why.
I will do my best not to download this leak.
From now on I will avoid any post title that reads “Grizzly Bear” to avoid reading how amazing it is.
Thank you all.
that’s what i said before i saw this post =/
regardless of how good this album may be, i’ll bet that no one will be talking about this album by the time summer comes around. you’ll all have moved on to something else, just like you did with the record by those animal collections.
The blogs probably wont, but it’ll come up again at the end of the year when it’s on the TOP OF EVERYONE’S LIST. Wait, scratch that it comes out in Late may, so you’ll DEFINITELY still be hearing about it in JULY
HAVE A GOOD YEAR
Yeah that’s why there’s comments comparing the two right off the bat. Cause people forgot about MPP.
MPP is a landmark, as is Veckatimest, you guys have missed the boat, just be grateful…
What are you talking about? Veckatimest and MPP are my 1 and 2 albums so far.
Bitter, anyone?
To say people won’t be talking about an album by July is too much of a stretch, especially if you consider that it is actually released in May and that oh yeah, it’s Grizzly Bear, members of the indie creme of the crop with one of the most anticipated albums of this year.
we’re only human…
I love “Cheerleader,” “Fine For Now,” “Two Weeks,” “While You Wait For The Others.” I didn’t like “Dory” that much, but I’m certain it will grow on me over time.
can stereogum just make a place for the inevitable MPP VS VECKATIMEST debate that will go down on EVERY page about either band
I wanted to take this chance to apologize to everyone. Why you ask? I have a secret and its that I am the one who has been posting as the fake Ed Droste. Let me explain first a few things before you welcomingly hit that downward red arrow.
First and foremost, the joke in those posts was not meant to make fun of Ed’s homosexuality. There is nothing wrong with being gay at all. The humor (or lack there of, in most of your eyes) was actually to take the all-around goodness of Ed’s personality and ironically turn him into a power hungry rock god due to the deserving hype of this new album. We know that probably will not happen in real life, so this is why it should be ironic. On top of that, the hype surrounding Veckatimest has reached fever pitch levelsm here on Stereogum. This only supported the storyline I created in the fake Droste world because they helped establish the self-important nature in fictional Ed Droste.
Again, I apologize to all those who hated those string of posts, to Stereogum, to Ed if he read them. Humor is and always will be subjective, but I’ll do my best to keep things on a leash from now on.
As for what I think of Veckatimest, I listened to it about 8 times today, no lie. The first time I heard it, some tears welled in my eyes and I knew at that moment that experienced the true meaning of “beauty.” You may not think it’s the best album, you might think it is. There is one thing you cannot deny, though, and its that its special. Very special.
Thanks for coming clean man, I’ll be taking over now…
damn, i was scrolling down looking for your ed droste post. oh well, you had a good run. hilarious good run. ps- thank you for injecting some humor into some sad-sack self-serious indie douchfaces’ life.
not cool, dude. not cool.
The Grizzly vs Animal Collective tirades are pointless, let’s just appreciate that both are in top form and are worth getting excited over, end of story….
Yeah, this is really fucking great. What an awesome year for music.
How does it compare with the In Ear Park album?
Like night and fucking day. In Ear Park is a pleasant and interesting album, but it’s rather two-dimensional and a little repetitive after a while.
One of the things actually that I really like about this album is that I could actually hear a lot of EARLY Department of Eagles pop sensibility in there (especially on “Southern Point” and “I Live With You”), which is great because The Cold Nose is a really fun album.
i have to disagree…i think in ear park was criminally underrated. it made very few best-of lists (which, i know, doesn’t mean much, but still…), but i think it is a gorgeous and charming album. really special stuff. that said, the new grizzly bear is more enjoyable for me, but people shouldn’t write off in ear park. that album is a masterpiece.
be thankful. i mean, it’s only march. 2 great bands drop two great albums in 3 months time? madness!
I caved in…
…and I feel perfectly fine about it.
It lives up to the hype, plain and simple. The first time I listened through the album, it really just didn’t sink in how good it was because there are so many things going on with it. This is such a quantum leap from Yellow House in terms of songcraftmanship and nuance that it really somehow managed to catch me off-guard despite having heard half of the album’s tracks already performed live. Front-to-back, every second of this album is packed with utter beauty, creativity, and energy.
I think the one noticable thing that is really going to set this album apart from the rest of the good music out there right now is the fact that I think people ARE going to be talking about this album the rest of the year. I feel like this band has catapulted themselves into the realm of “supergroup,” in that it’s a collection of 4 absolutely tremendous musicians who are able to bring their collective talents together to create music that is both forward-thinking and incredibly pleasurable.
Normally I would say the “game-changer” monicker is a cliched and contrived way to describe any music that does something new and original. I really do feel that it’s spot-on in this case. But I guess the real test will be to ask me again six months from now and see if I feel the same way. I’m optimistic though.
Well put. So true. So True
Unbelievable album. I just wish they’d push up the actual release date so I can hear the high quality version sooner. I mean, May 25 is SO far off. And it’s kinda sad that it leaked as early as it did. =(
Why has there been no talk about Bear’s drumming yet? He totally makes the album. Everyone knows that Droste is world’s 2nd best Omnichord player (behind Jim James), that Rossen is a great guitarist, and that Chris Taylor looks like a puppet from Team America, but someone please talk about how awesome Bear is!!!
I was thinking about this too. He really is fucking awesome. The drums MAKE this album sooooo much better than Yellow House. Chris Bear=Hot & Genius Drummer
:)
Not to mention he was the classiest-dressed one of the band members at BAM with his little bow tie.
Dude’s awesome.
so so true. all around.
As long as we’re on topic, i gotta throw an omnichord shout out to john from half-handed cloud… dude rips it
okay John from half handed cloud
I love your comment. I mean, I really love it. Not only is it hilarious, but so damn spot on.
alright so im extremely happy with the new album obviously its really great. but i do get a little annoyed how it seems like everyone is convinced that AC and GB are the only people capable of making truly great music, stuff that is on that “other level.” there are more bands out there just as if not more capable
there’s a lot of momentum toward over-gushing here, but yellow house is better, front to back. go back and take another visit…
you are just wrong but I’m ok with that I think
I agree. I’ve listened to Veckatimest twice thus far and Grizzly Bear has crafted an album on par with its immediate predecessor but not one that is a radical evolution in sound. Veckatimest sounds great, but is essentially more of the same and is riding on a tidal wave of overstated hype. Still a predictably excellent release, just one that doesn’t quite deserve all of the praise it’s been universally receiving so far. But perhaps once this album gets its proper physical release and I’m able to digest its contents with headphones rather than a middling quality mp3, my verdict will change significantly. Excellent, but not sensational.
I think your comment says a lot. 1: Wait more then 3 days to make big statements 2: Wait for actual copy with good sound quality 3: Digest the album
Then we’ll talk
when do we start having the wolf parade argument? ya know, ed vs. dan? spencer vs. dan?
winners: ed and dan b.
Come on, Spencer always wins.
Definitely great and all, but am I the only one who thinks “Southern Point” blows the rest of the record away? Definitely my favorite thing I’ve heard from them.
I wouldn’t say it blows the rest of the album AWAY; the entire thing is way too solid for one song to fulfill that role. However, it is certainly one of the best songs on the album. The changes in the song are incredible.
In Ear Park > Veckatimest (But this one is still full of absolute jams)
Sorry honey, you are just wrong on that one. Veckatimest>Yellow House>In Ear Park>Horn Of Plenty>Friend
There, now you know
All I’ve heard of this is what they played on Late Night TV shows, and that’s all I’m going to hear until the thing comes in the mail…and I’m not reading another damn word about how brilliant it is. All the hype for MPP gave me astronomical expectations, and because of that, it was a letdown. Now that I’ve given it some time on my own without all the bloggers’ and commenters’ input, it’s great, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to let my expectations for this get built up only to have another letdown on release day…that said…I can’t wait.
Fine for Now is a jam, and this album is definitely up there with MPP. It’s going to take some repeated listens to see how it compares, but I love it so far.
i just don’t think that MPP even holds a candle to this album. MPP is good and all, but veckatimest is just way way way way more beautiful than animal collective ever will be. and i’m listening to a 160k transcode.
let the pissing resume.
boring.
you probably think “it’s shitz” is the best album of the year. I never fucking get it when people call an album like this boring. Not your cup of tea, OK, but it’s hardly boring. The chord changes are interesting, the melodies and harmonies unique. The drumming fantastic, the songs varied. If it’s boring you’re a fucking idiot. If it’s not your thing, fair enough.
Ihave no argument here, as i till havent heard the album in its entirety, but i do agree that a comparison with mpp is inevitable. i must hear this album, who can help me
Oh hell no. 1) GB are much more of a team effort — the songwriting meshes better (not that I don’t love me some Wolf Parade). 2) Spencer > Dan B. without a doubt. Sunset Rubdown>Wolf Parade>Handsome Furs. Have you heard Spencer’s lyrics?
NRS = Name Really Spencer
nice try krugman.
ED AND SPENCER
to answer the poll.
All Ed moments make this thing for me. Make it more than the rest, I guess. When he hits the good, highish, clean note.
Yes I’m high.
I had never listened to GB before Veckatimest, and my life changed a bit. Ridiculously and meticulously good – hats off to ya.
Yeah, I’m going to have to disagree with almost everyone on this blog.. Which is not a surprise because you guys love the boring singer songerwriter shit! But this was kind of a let down..I was hoping it would rival MPP.. It doesn;t. I love it and all, but the only songs that really kill me are the Droste songs, like two weeks, Cheerleader, Ready Able, and Foreground.. The rest bores me to death much like the DOE stuff.. With that said, this is not even in the same league as MPP.. Neither Dan or even Ed can match My girls or Brothersport.. But a great album nonetheless! Probably will be the second best of the year.. A far second though.. And to the person who put Astral Weeks as your #1 album of all time.. PLEASE GO TO HELL… You are a GIANT ASSHOLE!!!
Your second favorite album of the year has songs that bore you to death? I’d like to know how you feel about your number 3 record? That must be excruciating.
Mpp I find very tiring to listen to. Like a barrage of compressed texture and noise. This is a sonic wave of amazingness. There is nothing boring about it. check your ears.
nope that’s you.
hey stereogum, now that you’ve mentioned it and driven me mad with envy, can you please post the mp3 for the original marla track by ed’s aunt? every link ive found seems to be dead…
The first song sounds like that dude from Steely Dan is singing…
Is that a good thing?
Maybe for some people…
Like my 50 year old Sting loving uncle….
But for me, I’m getting a little tired of music that isn’t fun to listen to…
Maybe I listened to the Department of Eagles album too much this past year…
I was listening to it on the way to work this morning, ejected it, and threw it out the window of my car…
Done with this stuff…
Can’t wait for spring.
-Farmer Ted
You sound like a pretty joyless lame creature. Go back to farming. Southern Point is fucking bombastic and ecstatic
Not only are you a prick… but also a litterer !!
Farmer Ted, while I completely disagree with you, I do you give you points on humor.
since when do farmers drive to work?
so so lah..
This is, SIMPLY PUT, the best album I’ve heard this year and in a long time for that matter.
stupid internet cliche #412: using the word “a beast” to describe anything
Honestly, I don’t think MPP is anything special. Sorry. Hate to burst your indie rock world bubble and all, but it’s really not that glorious. It’s not BAD, but it’s not an album that, i feel, surpasses FEELS in anyway whatsoever. As for the GB, I’ve listened to Yellow House dozens of times and it never caught on with me. I don’t know why. I will give Veck a few spins and i hope in the end i get why all you guys adore this band.
Even so, I’m pretty confident saying a crappy MMJ album is probably better than both of these combined – b/c they RAWK!
Also, Ladyhawk is probably one of the best new bands that no one gives a shit about. Just a little shout out b/c they deserve it.
And the kitchen sink.
That’s about it.
Vote me down….ready….ok, now!
Album of the year. I think this will be blowing people away for years and years to come. The level of craftsmanship in the songwriting, the performances, the production. It’s all top notch. And it’s all unique to them! When all four of them are working together, they’re definitely a force.
Watch Pitchfork give it a 7.5
What was the last album they gave a 10? If any band is ever going to get that rating again, it’s gonna be these dudes.
agreed agreed. or at least a high as a kite 9. completely deserves it!
I feel like I’m taking crazy pills! All the Dan songs sound the same except for While You Wait… There is a ZERO percent chance pitchfork gives this record a 10… It shouldn’t get as high as Microcastles. probably gets a 9. If you don’t like MPP you are insane by the way…. And Feels isn’t even as good as Sung Tongs.. With that said… Cheerleader and Ready, Able slay, and are on constant repeat around these parts!
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, I think.
I’m betting a 9.2 for this.
Seriously, if there was ever an album I heard that I could see Pitchfork giving a 10, it’s this one. But I think they only give 10′s to reissues about 10 years later. But man, this one deserves a ten or a least higher than MPP for sure. It’s just a better album through and through.
I just stumbled across this site. You guys are a bunch of losers. Comparing albums and ranking some of these albums as the best of all time. are you FUCKING kidding? i know work sucks in a cubicle, but really. this whole internet blogosphere thing is ridculous. i didn’t buy into how sad it was until now. the album is very good. let it sit with you for five years before you call it a classic you finger licking meat merchants. goodbye forever.
you guys, i think Wow just offed himself.
“Neeerrrddds!” – the fictional Eagles
Come back! This was a brilliant post full of truth. All hail!
Anyone want to hear a few new Camera Obscura songs? Go here: http://robotjones.com/?p=453
Then resume the Veckatimest vs. MPP debate…
Since when good music became a competition? I don´t understand people trying to compare Veckatimest and Mpp, they´re both damn good, think of ‘em as a perfect complement instead
I really don’t understand the praise that Grizzly Bear receives. I find them rather bland, really. I like a few songs on Veckatimest, but to hear people say this album is a masterpiece is beyond my comprehension. What am I missing?
Good taste
Taste is not the issue, I assure you.
Says you. HAH
What other bands should I like for me to have good taste?
ahhhh…. well, good question. let’s see,
there’s rod stewart, that kid kills, ummmm steve winwood (higher love esp.), babbabdadadadddddd death cab for cutie? (obvs.), FRIDA!!!! for sure, after that you probably good just listening to fleetwood mac and you’re set! stevie nicks is a babe.
Quiet
Comparing this to MPP is ridiculous, as the only thing they seem to have in common is hype. They are two completely different artists with two completely different sounds. Veckatimest is a textural masterpiece with all the nuance of Yellow House with a newly added pop flare (and Bear’s druming does make the album). But MPP is a totally different concept, a wall of sound that coalesces so much with each listen that eventually, it sounds like a solitary instrument playing one long, evolving melody (at least to me). They are both groundbreaking albums that sound entirely unique. To take away credit from one based upon the brilliance of the other is just silly. And while it’s great to see 2 established bands at the top of their game, let’s not forget that there are 9 months left for a new band to come and sweep us off our feet. Now, let’s start hyping the next Spoon album so that they actually begin making one.
all of you who took part in the pitchfork speculation mini-discussion over there should be internet ashamed of their internet selves.
WHO CARES ABOUT PITCHFORK?
MAKE UP YOUR OWN MINDS.
this is a fucking masterpiece – i cannot push away reminders of pet sounds – i dont care what anyone says. the subtle beauty of this album blows me away. its absolutely gorgeous and the harmonies are perfect.
Add me to the list of people who don’t get the insane praise. I like the band fine and have nothing against them, but I really just don’t see the masterpiece everyone else does. I appreciate all the layers and instruments and interesting progressions and all that is in this album, but ultimately I just don’t think it amounts to very interesting music. A lot of these songs are indistinguishable from each other imo. At first listen I’d say I probably like Yellow House better, but even that album didn’t blow me away like it did everyone else. Ultimately, I don’t think these guys write very interesting melodies. They layer harmonies well (very well in fact. I’ve seen them live), and create really unique and interesting music. It’s just kind of like DOE, I just find it somewhat uninteresting. It shows flashes, but the songs rarely go anywhere I care about hearing again. Maybe I’m just crazy.
yeah I kinda think you are crazy
bromst, brothers blood, mama i’m swollen, and tentacles > veckatimest.
really glad I’m not dating you
Whoops but you are! He’s all of ours’ boyfriend.
Needs more reverb
Are the m4a files really a “low quality rip” or is he bullshitting us? There’s clearity, but the mix sounds like shit.
bromst and the bromst tour and going to destroy this and animal collective’s new record. everyone knows that
LOL @ anyone thinking Dan Deacon makes anything that is exciting for more than 3 months blogger attention spans
i hate dan deacon so much
mpp had two great songs and nine mediocre songs. veck has three great and nine mediocre. yellow house was alot more my style. on a neck, colorado, reprise are all songs of theirs i loved but veck just isnt my thing. i dont understand how two or three fantastic songs make a whole album become prolific and flawless. i hate to disagree with the majority because it falls on deaf ears but i just wanted to say that.
You need to listen longer to Veckatimest. MUCH MORE than 3 great songs.
Most great albums don’t have great songs, exactly. That is, an album isn’t great because it has non-stop singles, but rather because there is a consistent emotional (or narrative or aesthetic) thread that binds the work together that makes it more than a sum of its parts. People don’t normally applaud “Remain in Light” or “Dark Side of the Moon” or “Kid A” because of their hot jamz.
I did and it is worth it! Any and all hype or praise for Veckatimest is well deserved. Robyn Pecknold is right, this is the best album of the 2K aughts. Hopefully everyone that is enjoying it as much as I am will do the right thing and pre-order a physical copy, go to a show and drop a twenty at the merch table.
Anyone here declaring albums like Veckatimest and Merriweather Post Pavilion, especially the former seeing how it hasn’t even seen an official QUALITY release, as the best albums of the decade are fucking crazy. But more than likely you all have very limited range of tastes. Otherwise, you would never allow yourself to make such a blasphemous statement. They are certainly excellent albums, but aren’t even contenders for album of the year, much less close to albums of the decade. Although Merriweather Post Pavilion is the better of the two. “Two Weeks” and “I Live With You” are the only shining moments of genius on Veckatimest. Otherwise, it’s just well-crafted songs that are for whatever reason just short of brilliance. There are times the album sounds cluttered, awkwardly sequenced and self-indulgent. Yellow House is still better. I guarantee that if Pitchfork were to give a score of 4.9 instead of 9.4 like you are probably expecting, most of you would immediately disown this album and turn your backs on the band. People put entirely too much faith in critics to decide what albums are worthy of merit. It’s like many of you share one networked brain and can’t really think for yourselves. Just (falsely) declaring Veckatimest as a masterpiece just because everyone else is and that’s what so many people are expecting it to be. Truth be told, it’s not, never was and likely won’t ever be that masterpiece. There are just SO many albums that are worthy of all the praise and don’t get it because they are constantly overlooked while the majority of you foolishly ignore just because they are not nearly as hyped. There is so much more to music than just Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear, geez.
This could quite possibly be the best album to come out in my life time thus far.
http://strandedinstereo.blogspot.com/2009/03/can.html
Wait, are you 2?
This is not better then MPP or Yellow House, but is still GREAT. 9/10
It’s DEFINITELY better than BOTH yellow house AND MPP
i was a little backwards leaning at first. I loved yellow house more than I could express, and wasn’t instantly mesmerized by songs the way I was with lullaby, on a neck, and reprise. upon more listens though, this album is unstoppable. so so so many good things. my only complaint is that i wish on a few of the songs (mainly cheerleader) ed had let his voice go into the deeper, more gothic singing style that he has been utilizing live. it’s just so powerful. I’m giving it a 9.6.
I gave it a good listen. I think its pretentious, self conscious and too gentle. No way is it like the greatest album of the year or anything. Soft music for soft people.
Can you explain to me what is pretentious about this? Assuming you really understand the meaning of the word?
This is a 10/10 album for me. Instant classic
Your argument is not supported by evidences or examples. Your grammar was acceptable, so I will give you a C- . Please try to cite sources from now on.
It’s odd to me that anyone would add the word “like” into their comments. Especially when they are trying to make a point…or something…
>>>>Ultimately, I don’t think these guys write very interesting melodies<<<<<
WOW !
This made me laugh:
“If radios were still a thing that existed, they totally wouldn’t need to make radio edits.”
Dude, being that LA is car culture (thanks Big Oil and Big Tires), radio was really important. Especially when stuck in traffic and/or commuting to work. People often complained that radio in LA sucked… but after living in NYC, (some) radio in LA was actually pretty decent compared to how shitty radio is back East. Now, unless I’m listening to the news (KPFK & NPR) or This American Life, most radio in LA is shitty Top 40 crap. :( Even killer NPR programs, as just mentioned can simply be downloaded as a podcast to listen to at my convenience. Radio, indeed, is dead. Corporations suck sweaty smelly hairy balls.
My two cents. ;)
This is reallly a very boring album. Yellow House was intriguing, but this just sounds too crisp, and leaves it feeling hollow.
You are so insanely stupid it’s mind boggling to me.
i would prematurely ejaculate all over this album if it were a human
A week later and I’m positive this is an instant classic, not only AOTY but something much bigger. Fucking phenomenal
I can appreciate the time that went into this album, and the studio savviness involved. It sounds terrific. But to me (and bear in mind people of the internet that there are no absolute truths when it comes to album reviews, only opinions) this record is self indulgent and humorless. Two qualities that when combined, make for some of my least favorite listening.
So, I know making comments on here is essentially pointless. However, nobody is giving this cd anything below amazing reviews. I like it. But, some of the accolades it’s receiving are too much. I could never get into Yellow House, but I absolutely love Department of Eagles. This is much better than YH, but it’s still just really good (not the second coming).
Having said that, I can’t wait to hear the actual album because I think more will be aurally revealed with a crisper production. This one is murky.
People need to bear in mind it is a low quality leak. I’m saving my judgements until I can hear on full blast in my car or on headphones.
I liked the new Animal Collective album much better when I finally bought the album.
“Fine For Now” with headphones is a religious experience.
Album of the year. Sorry, Animal Collective. This is GB’s year.
Agreed Bill–you can’t compare the two albums. Not sure what the fuck Deli Owner is going on about. Not sure this needs some humour, it’s heartbreakingly gorgeous. Self important, impossible to tell. Indulgent? Why? This is a timeless record with SONGS, not just repetative loops like MPP
chris bear is the most underrated musician on the scene.
he totally makes grizzly bear.
I confess I was a sceptic. I’ll admit to writing elsewhere on these forums: “Grizzly Bear sucks Animal Collective’s collective balls.” I was wrong. Cheerleader is something else altogether; for me it’s on par with anything Radiohead and Animal Collective ever wrote that I would call beautiful.
I call Street Team on this pleasantly average band’s hype.
i call loser’s taste on this band’s haters
Has the GB backlash started yet? Oh ya, we have to wait for the PF review first.
Anytime a great album is semi universally seen as one, the backlash begins, usually from bitter trolls
THEY ALL PALE IN COMPARISON TO THE MIGHTY KID A!!!!!!!!!!!!
That is all.
There is definitely mediocrity on this album. It requires a lot of patience and bias to convince yourself otherwise.
http://lizzyville.blogs.com/index/2009/03/album-review-grizzly-bear-veckatimest.html
AOTY
there is no competition here
Spectacularly gorgeous album.
ok, i put this album on last night, trying to go to sleep, but (surprise surprise!) i ended up staying awake through the entirety of it in absolute awe. and that was probably the 10th time through for me…
with that being said, MPP is still a much better album. sorry.
its perfect, and can’t be beat as far as i’m concerned.
mpp starts to blend together and annoy with its “sameness”, Veckatimest beats MPP without question. No comparison raeally