Raised on cashews and cocktails in Boston by an elementary school music teacher, Edward Droste grew up surrounded by music, prompting him to take up various instruments and write his own songs at an early age. After a few years hiatus (studying at Gallatin at NYU and working in documentary film) he revived his interest in music after learning the fundamentals of pro-tools at his day job and investing in an Mbox. After blowing most of his cash on electronics, he proceeded to use whatever he could get his hands on to make new sounds, capturing it all on a small hand held tape recorder.
During a long fifteen-month hibernation in his cozy Greenpoint, Brooklyn bedroom, Droste laid the groundwork for Grizzly Bear's first album. Upon completion of this "demo," Droste enlisted the help of a real bear, Christopher Bear, who breathed new life and sounds to the work. Hailing from Chicago, Bear has worked in various musical projects ranging from laptop shenanigans to free jazz. He has provided a vast technical knowledge, a certain sonic polishing, as well as additional instruments and vocals to the initially primitive recordings.
The result, Grizzly Bear's debut album titled "Horn of Plenty." is a nostalgic amalgamation of found sounds and layered vocals bound to thrill followers of Animal Collective, Sufjan Stevens and Nick Drake. It represents the combined influences of Bear's affinity for older classics such as Tyrannosaurus Rex and Arthur Russell mixed with Droste's more contemporary tastes.
While the album pushes the boundaries of mellow into undiscovered territory, Grizzly Bear is not sure if they fall under the newly coined "freak-folk" category or the new-folk genre, offering up their own suggestions instead: wood-tempo or cave-core. They also say that the band's name reflects both boy's inner forest ranger and penchant for slumbering, while the sounds reveals the struggle between urban and rural, in what could be described as electro-organic.
Grizzly Bear music started out as a pet project of Droste's meant only for friends, but it has taken on a life of its own, circulating widely. The band knew it was time to awake when Droste's mother played the album for a cocktail party of castrating Boston harpies- bringing the guests to a standstill - followed by erupting applause- and the rest is just grizzly.
With their debut album out now on Kanine Records, Grizzly Bear has been spreading their gospel as a live act with the addition of Chris Taylor to the group. Playing reeds and electronics, his talents have lured Grizzly Bear out of hibernation, and into the world as a living, breathing animal. With three voices, guitar, clarinet, percussion, and colorful effects, Grizzly Bear's live sound maintains the dreamy, subdued qualities of "Horn of Plenty", yet explores a more electric and psychedelic path, leading to a dynamic and mesmerizing concert experience.