Grizzly Bear: Friend : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

The Brooklyn four-some Grizzly Bear hit the indie-rock jackpot last year with Yellow House, showing off their knack for trippy folk reveries. This odds-and-sods collection isn't the place to get to know them, but it's more than just a victory lap, as Grizzly Bear don't merely sum up their sound — they sum up its context, by inviting musical fellow travelers to mess with their music. Brazilian trash-disco hellions CSS do a fantastic version of "Knife," turning up the electro-twitch synth hooks; the same song gets a psychedelic Pet Sounds air from Deerhunter's Bradford Cox, under the name Atlas Sound. Band of Horses do "Plans" as a banjo hoedown. Grizzly Bear offer a rocked-out remake of their own "Little Brother," and a home recording of the folkie standard "Deep Blue Sea." On the minus side, there's a blah cover of Phil Spector's "He Hit Me," plus a dull new version of "Alligator," with the acclaimed yet half-assed Dirty Projectors. Intentionally or not, Friend gives a vivid picture of Grizzly Bear's strengths and weaknesses — all of which are still in flux.