Grizzly Bear

BIOGRAPHY

Grizzly Bear formed in Brooklyn in 2002 as a home-recording project for songwriter Ed Droste, whose 2004 debut Horn of Plenty featured early contributions from future drummer Christopher Bear. Guitarist Daniel Rossen, a friend of Bear's from jazz camp, soon joined, and Chris Taylor rounded out the lineup on bass and production. The band's 2006 album Yellow House, recorded at Droste's mother's house, drew widespread critical acclaim and landed on year-end best-of lists from The New York Times and Pitchfork. Their 2009 follow-up Veckatimest, led by the single "Two Weeks," reached No. 8 on the Billboard 200 and sold over 220,000 copies. The more adventurous Shields followed in 2012, and Painted Ruins arrived in 2017 to positive reviews.

WHY THEY'RE COOL

Grizzly Bear built a reputation on dense sonic buildups and gorgeous vocal harmonies, moving from a bedroom-recording origin to a band capable of selling out arenas of critical goodwill. Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood once called them his favorite band on stage during a joint tour. Their steady evolution, from the hushed intimacy of Yellow House to the compositional ambition of Shields, has kept critics returning album after album.

GEORGE'S PLAYS

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