Sorry for the Delay

iTunes Review

Though they’ve since evolved into a fully fledged band complete with dual songwriters and a crack rhythm section, Grizzly Band started life as the bedroom project of guitarist/songwriter Ed Droste, who was almost entirely responsible for the feedback-swathed, gently deconstructed folk of the group’s 2004 debut Horn of Plenty. Sorry for the Delay, a collection of home demos that predates Horn of Plenty features spare and occasionally dissonant productions that are starkly at odds with the meticulously groomed sound of more recent Grizzly Bear offerings. Droste’s trusty acoustic guitar and gently whispered vocals are the album’s focal point, but the stark beauty of songs like “Particular To What” and “Sure Thing” are often deliberately obscured by washes of ambient noise and stray electronic squiggles. Though the effect is unquestionably dissonant its not without its charms. Droste cunningly deploys these destructive production touches in such a way as to make these delicate songs sound as though they are imploding in slow motion. It can be a disturbing, sometimes harrowing listen but listeners with adventurous tastes will find much of value here.