Yellow House (album)
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| Yellow House | ||||
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| Studio album by Grizzly Bear | ||||
| Released | September 5, 2006 | |||
| Recorded | July, 2006[1] | |||
| Genre | Indie Folk Indie Rock Psych Folk Folk Rock Baroque Pop |
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| Length | 50:00 | |||
| Label | Warp | |||
| Producer | Chris Taylor | |||
| Grizzly Bear chronology | ||||
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Yellow House is the second studio album by indie rock band Grizzly Bear, released on September 5, 2006 on Warp Records. The album's title is in reference to vocalist Ed Droste's mother's house where a majority of the recording took place. Droste and bandmate Chris Taylor suggest that: "there is not really a theme with the lyrics but the theme of the album is us figuring out how to work together and recording in that house, which is what brought it together in that weird way."[2]
The first single, "Knife," was only released on 7" picture disc vinyl with the exclusive B-side "Easier" (alternate edit) on May 21, 2007. A music video for "Knife" was produced by Encyclopedia Pictura in 2007. A music video for "Central and Remote," directed by Jesse Ewles, was also released in 2007.
In 2009 the Warp20 (Recreated) compilation featured a cover of "Colorado" by Pivot and "Little Brother" by Jamie Lidell.
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[edit] Writing and recording process
Many of the demos for the album were what the band refers to as "sketches," done by mostly singer/guitarists Daniel Rossen and Ed Droste. "Marla" itself is actually a song written by Droste's great aunt, a failed musician. As he explained in an interview with Pitchfork Media:
| “ | Well, the whole "Marla" story of my great aunt being this failed musician that dies at an early age in the 1940s was, basically, I got this CD a few years ago from the last remaining sibling of hers, who had finally decided to transfer this stuff to disc. For me, this was the one song. Much in the way that I kind look at the "Owner of a Lonely Heart" thing-- even though that was just myself-- and see this melancholic, slower edge that I heard in it. Not that it was exactly the same because this was obviously the four of us working on it, but I took the song and said, "Look everybody, I'm not sure how we'll do this, but it will be really cool if we slowed it down and tried to give it our own spin." Luckily, everyone was really into it, but it was very much a blank page for a few days. | ” |
As Horn of Plenty was a solo effort by Droste, this record is truly the band's "debut" as it features all members contributing to the writing and production of the album. Recordings took place throughout July 2006 in the house of Droste's mother on Cape Cod in 2006.[3]
[edit] Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   link |
| The Guardian |  link |
| Pitchfork Media | (8.7/10) [1] |
| PlayLouder | link |
| Stylus Magazine | (A-) link |
| Tiny Mix Tapes | link |
| URB | Jul/Aug 2006, p.118 |
The album received critical acclaim from several major publications, and ranked #8 in Pitchfork Media's best albums of 2006 list, as well as a similarly high placement in the same list of the New York Times. The music webzine Tiny Mix Tapes ranked Yellow House #7 on the Top 25 Albums of 2006. It currently holds a score of 79 at aggregate critic review site, MetaCritic.[4]
[edit] Track listing
All songs written and composed by Christopher Bear, Edward Droste, Daniel Rossen, Chris Taylor, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Easier" | 3:43 |
| 2. | "Lullabye" | 5:14 |
| 3. | "Knife" | 5:14 |
| 4. | "Central and Remote" | 4:54 |
| 5. | "Little Brother" (lyrics by Fred Nicolaus) | 6:24 |
| 6. | "Plans" | 4:16 |
| 7. | "Marla" (co-written by Marla Forbes) | 4:56 |
| 8. | "On a Neck, On a Spit" | 5:46 |
| 9. | "Reprise" | 3:19 |
| 10. | "Colorado" | 6:14 |
| 11. | "Granny Diner" (Japanese release only) | 4:51 |
[edit] Personnel
The following people contributed to Yellow House:[5]
[edit] Band
- Christopher Bear – drums, vocals, xylophone, lap steel, glockenspiel
- Edward Droste – vocals, keyboard, autoharp, guitar
- Daniel Rossen – vocals, guitars, banjo, piano, autoharp
- Chris Taylor – clarinet, flute, saxophone, vocals, keyboard, bass, electronics and treatments
[edit] Additional musicians
- G. Lucas Crane - tapes ("Plans")
- Owen Pallett - strings, string arrangements ("Marla")
- John Marshman - strings ("Marla")
[edit] Recording personnel
- Chris Taylor – producer, recording, mixing
- Chris Coady - mixing
[edit] Artwork
- Patryce Bak - photography
- Ben Tousley - design
[edit] Song appearances
"Reprise," "Little Brother," "On a Neck, On a Spit," "Central and Remote", "Plans", and "Easier" are used as background music on several of Adult Swim's bumps. "On a Neck, On a Spit" was featured on The CW show Reaper.
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.spin.com/articles/grizzly-bear-soap-opera?page=0%2C1
- ^ http://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/6453-grizzly-bear/
- ^ http://www.spin.com/articles/grizzly-bear-soap-opera?page=0%2C1
- ^ http://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/grizzlybear/yellowhouse?q=yellow%20house
- ^ Yellow House liner notes.
[edit] External links
- "Knife" music video on YouTube
- "Central and Remote" music video on Subterranean Blog
- Interview Pitchfork Media Interview
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