Daniel Rossen’s Silent Hour/Golden Mile EP came out today, and true to form for Grizzly Bear’s Rossen, it doesn’t disappoint. Though he’s perhaps the lesser-known entity of Grizzly Bear (the other being gravy-voiced Ed Droste), everything Rossen has released to this point, both within the band (his gorgeous “Deep Blue Sea," for instance”) or without it (as part of Department of Eagles) has born an unmistakable stamp. It’s a tribute to his talent that you can say that without being able to describe just what that stamp is. It’s a certain mysteriousness that is part of what makes Grizzly Bear so alluring, where you’re very much hearing folk-rock with a kind of doo-wop vocal delivery — sounds simple enough — but everything is curiously out of reach. Lyrics are more suggestive than descriptive, intimating nostalgia and loss without really being forthright about it, and arrangements tend to spiral out rather than circle back to where they’ve started. Silent Hour/Golden Mile is actually more direct than some of Rossen’s other work. “Up On High” wouldn’t be out of place on a Grizzly Bear album, while “Silent Song” and “Golden Mile” are relatively straightforward rock songs that still spin off from typical construction, with spindly guitars and high, cooing vocals that remind me a bit of mid-period Radiohead without actually sounding anything like that. Both songs also benefit from hummable moments — not something Rossen is always known for — as well as the kind of high, lap steel guitar lines found famously in Santo & Johnny’s “Sleepwalk” or George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord.” At five songs, Silent Hour/Golden Mile leaves you wanting for much more, which I’m guessing we’ll get in the form of the next Grizzly Bear or Department of Eagles album, but the EP is far from a departure or indulgence. It’s more like a treat, an appetizer for something bigger.

Youtube asked us to create a playlist of our favorite music of 2011. That's a pretty big task given how much music we all loved this year. We tried to keep it as close to 20 videos as we could (but we ended up with the random number of 22 faves). Check out our little intro video and then dive into our playlist...




Zola Jesus
Conatus
Sacred Bones

Conatus continued Zola Jesus' evolution to full-fledged goth pop star, with dance beats and hooks underpinning her freaky awesome voice.



Tinariwen
Tassili
Anti- / Epitaph

Malian Touareg band Tinariwen are joined by Kyp and Tunde from TV on the Radio on this beautiful single.





Girls
Father Son Holy Ghost
True Panther Sounds

Text by Lauren Landes
Images by Pia, Courtney and Amber

Another year in the tiny history book of Record Store Day has been logged! Huzzah! April 16, 2011 marks three years and four holidays since a group of music lovers conceived and founded Record Store Day, and the nascent event looks like its cogs are just starting to build up momentum. The overflowing anticipation and excitement ought to keep us all going until next April, when an even larger quantity of releases will presumably arrive in the bins of independent record stores across the world (don't expect to find any of these delicious goodies over at a corporate retail store, though). As a record store employee, it's very exciting to see so many people line up outside my second home before the rooster has crowed just for some exclusive CD/vinyl/other releases sure to be sold out forever.

A quiet day at Amoeba is still overwhelming enough for a lot of people, and a busy day like this past Saturday creates a very unique kind of energy that makes the place feel more like festival grounds than a record store--the vinyl tents at Coachella and Bonnaroo come to mind.

If only every day could be so packed with eager music searchers and ecstatic, hourly announcements for "Fucked Up," the world might feel about thirty percent peppier at all times. Nonetheless, this is why we at Amoeba get so excited for the holiday whose theme song is the sweet sound of excited fingers peeling thin plastic off a 12" square package.

by Sally
Davey Havoc pic by Audra, all other pics by Kaitlin.

Every year Record Store Day just gets bigger and bigger, and the craziness grows! Here in SF before we opened the line was INSANE outside our doors and the first person in line had been there since 6am! That's some dedication! Even more astounding, customers were calling Friday night and asking if they could camp out for prime spots on the big day!

At 10:30am on the button, the doors were opened and people swarmed into the treasure-laden vinyl aisles of Amoeba SF. There were hoardes of people packing the rows and surrounding the 7"s. Watch an awesome video below shot by Audra of the line and the vibe before the doors were flung open!