Grizzly Bear

Excellent band full of incredible musicianship and rich textures. All four members sing in the harmonies and they somehow recreate the layers of the recording in their live shows.

I wouldn't know how to categorize their genre- it blends chamber pop with folk, indie rock, psychedelic rock, easy listening, and even mountain rock.

Ed Droste has perfect dynamic shifts in lead and backing vocals. Christopher Bear is an expert drummer rooted in jazzy syncopation and classical percussion. Daniel Rossen is one of the best guitar players this century and effortlessly blends complex riffs with the production. And Chris Taylor is an incredible multi-instrumentalist- plays bass guitar, trumpet, tenor and bari saxophone, and flute to create atmospheric textures- and the band's producer. Just outstanding all-around. They're a bit more of a slow-burn band to really appreciate the layers, but it's worth it!

Still surprised that not many people know about this band. I guess it's good that they don't get too overhyped, but definitely worth listening to. They span genres from indie rock to psychedelic folk. Lush tones and talented musicians behind the mics and the productions. I'd recommend to anyone, but especially those who are into Fleet Foxes, Vampire Weekend, Tame Impala, and The Walkmen. All albums are solid (my least favorite is still a 7/10).

From junodog4 02/04/2015 04:17

Lovely. Hope they can keep this up.

Thanks a lot to BEA admins for introducing me to grizzly bear and many other top quality albums..... This site is the best in ranking albums.... fuk rolling stone and pitchfork and other lousy critics

Started with Veckatimest and finally got into it, a lot. Bought Yellow House and got into it a little more. Heard all the older stuff like Horn of Plenty and Sorry for the delay, the latter being much better. Shields came out and I was very pleased, saw them in concert shortly after and was blown away. Fantastic Band!!

From pearljammer13 11/08/2012 00:43

Seeing Shields ranked so high this year is what finally pursuaded me to listen to them. Thank you once again BEA. Shields is a masterpiece. Veckatimest is fantastic too. Only listened to Yellow House once but I can tell I'm going to love that one as well. Sometimes they make you work to really "get" their songs. But it becomes a love fest once you do.

One of the best bands today. Never predictable, always adventorous and challenging, and with as much feeling into every record as there is deftly crafted songs