1. Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest
Andy : 2 :: Dave : 1
I’ve had several days to prepare this, but of course delayed more than I should have. No matter, I hope all those who celebrate Christmas have a great day, and for all those who celebrate something else or don’t celebrate anything in particular, you can have a great day too.
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Perhaps our ranking guise was misdirected. Andy and I each ranked our forty favorite albums and gave them a corresponding point total of one to forty, with our top album obviously getting the most points and then descending downward from there. We timed it out so that the reveal of our top record would happen on Christmas Day. Coincidentally or not, my favorite album of the year weighted out to be Tympanogram’s best of the year. And for this I am most grateful.
The odd thing is that before this record I may not have been so pleased with this result. You see, I disliked Grizzly Bear before Veckatimest. Where my animosity to the band derived from I am not completely certain. I have faint recollections of seeing an interview with the band followed by a music video and I recall disliking the impression the band members gave off during this interview. Perhaps I didn’t enjoy the accompanying song and video due to that fact. My disinclination to consume Grizzly Bear’s music likely compounded thereafter out of some ill conceived prejudice. That is, until I heard the majesty of ‘Two Weeks.’
Upon hearing the song the first time I knew immediately it would be one of my all time favorite songs. I can’t quite explain sufficiently just what it is that I love so much about it, but love it, I do. The fact that you could make the case for several others songs on the album being just as good or better, speaks to the talent and precision of this band at work.
Oftentimes to me, bands that focus almost entirely on production tend to lose the element of soul within their music. A rawness of talent and emotion make for the best music, and production removes or masks that in many band’s efforts. Grizzly Bear’s talent and emotion present on Veckatimest is not lost and in fact amplified, most likely because you can feel this immensely talented band perfecting their work instead of masking some deficiency.
There is a reason that Veckatimest is my number one album of the year. It has changed my perception of not only Grizzly Bear’s music, but music in general.
Grizzly Bear – Two Weeks
Grizzly Bear – Ready, Able
Both songs from Veckatimest
