Veckatimest
by Grizzly Bear
  • Record Label: Warp
  • Release Date: May 26, 2009
User Score
8.7

Universal acclaim- based on 216 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 199 out of 216
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 216
  3. Negative: 12 out of 216

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  1. MusicIsMyFriend
    Nov 5, 2010
    10
    It's pulls you in with Two Weeks, and just grows on you from there on in. Grab your headphones and prepare to go on a musical journey for the next 50 minutes, almost every song is a classic and the album flows very well.
  2. RyeR.
    May 29, 2009
    10
    The year's best album. With a bullet.
  3. Andy
    May 27, 2009
    9
    A Pet Sounds inspired record that does not sound derivative. You won't hear many bands create more beautiful music than Grizzly Bear do on Veckatimest.
  4. DaveG
    May 29, 2009
    10
    Yeah, I get the whole "oh it's just this year's it band" criticism. Get past that, and it's the best record all year, hands down-- and I've already gushed over Animal Collective.
  5. MarkS
    Jun 21, 2009
    8
    Don
  6. MarkF
    Jun 2, 2009
    9
    A progression of sorts from 2006's Yellow House. It's livelier but not as consistently good as its predecessor.
  7. StuartC
    Jun 2, 2009
    7
    The best songs go round and gloriously round in your head for days, but there are too many others that merely *feel* like they go on for days.
  8. jabezT.
    Jun 6, 2009
    10
    This is simply a great album. Beautiful vocals and arrangements. I just saw them at Town Hall in NYC and they were fantastic. Ben Ratliff of the NY Times called their music cold, but he's dead wrong. This music celebrates the most human element in pop music, the voice, and surpasses others like the Beach Boys and Animal Collective on so many levels. I fell in love with the internet This is simply a great album. Beautiful vocals and arrangements. I just saw them at Town Hall in NYC and they were fantastic. Ben Ratliff of the NY Times called their music cold, but he's dead wrong. This music celebrates the most human element in pop music, the voice, and surpasses others like the Beach Boys and Animal Collective on so many levels. I fell in love with the internet download, then bought the CD and it is well worth it for the improvement in sound. This is one to treasure.… Expand
  9. MattG
    Jul 1, 2009
    10
    This is an album for people who want their music to take them on a journey, where the discoveries made along the way are just as important as the destination itself. Veckatimest conntinues to reveal itself with every listen, proving that it is an album that will stand the test of time. I pity those who listen to it once and dismiss it as they are missing out on something special. From the This is an album for people who want their music to take them on a journey, where the discoveries made along the way are just as important as the destination itself. Veckatimest conntinues to reveal itself with every listen, proving that it is an album that will stand the test of time. I pity those who listen to it once and dismiss it as they are missing out on something special. From the grandiose opener Southern Point to the gorgeous closer Foreground it is an intricate and delicate musical experience. It's hard to think of an album with 2 better, abliet contrastingly different, bookends. And I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the Jeff Buckley similarities. If you liked Grace, give this a listen. You won't be disappointed.… Expand
  10. GinoM
    Sep 9, 2009
    10
    On of the greatest albums of the year if not the decade. I love heavy riffs, hard'n'fast tempos, and simplicity, but once in a while it's fantastic to find comfort in such a sublime and carefully crafted album.
  11. garrettj
    May 27, 2009
    10
    One of this years best. Beautifully arranged, Veckatimest soars from start to finish.
  12. JamesB.
    May 27, 2009
    9
    This is an absolutely stunning and gorgeous album! There's not a single clunker on it, though I DO have my personal favs. This masterful album's intricacy and intimacy is profoundly felt and appreciated indeed. "Veckatimest" is certainly destined to be lauded as one of 2009's best albums for sure.
  13. JamesN
    May 28, 2009
    10
    Prime contender for MPP.
  14. MattR
    Jun 1, 2009
    10
    Grizzly Bear's best album to date, an orchestral exploration of musical oddities and minor keys.
  15. MeowBark
    Jun 9, 2009
    8
    guys, please. why does everyone need to lie to themselves and say this is the best thing they've ever heard? yellow house - now THAT was a classic. this sounds like Department Of Eagles released another album. i like it alot, love Two Weeks (even though i think it sounded better and less precious on Letterman) but having listened to Department Of Eagles last record that guys voice is guys, please. why does everyone need to lie to themselves and say this is the best thing they've ever heard? yellow house - now THAT was a classic. this sounds like Department Of Eagles released another album. i like it alot, love Two Weeks (even though i think it sounded better and less precious on Letterman) but having listened to Department Of Eagles last record that guys voice is starting to sounds like a one trick pony. i, for one, am mildly disappointed. still givin it an 8 cause they're such a rad band.… Expand
  16. P.B
    Jul 10, 2009
    9
    Better with every listening.
  17. DavidS
    Aug 29, 2009
    9
    My daughter bought this CD for me because she likes them - and what a great present! This is the best album I have heard all year. Great vocals, great songs and great musicianship. Hard to pigeon hole and why would you want to? Favourite songs? All really good but I 'd have to say Southern Point and Ready, Able, and While you Wait for the Others (but I could list them all). Give this My daughter bought this CD for me because she likes them - and what a great present! This is the best album I have heard all year. Great vocals, great songs and great musicianship. Hard to pigeon hole and why would you want to? Favourite songs? All really good but I 'd have to say Southern Point and Ready, Able, and While you Wait for the Others (but I could list them all). Give this album a listen - it was an instant hit with me and continues to get bet with each listen.… Expand
  18. guybrushthreepwood
    Sep 10, 2009
    10
    This album is such a grower - on the first listen, it is instantly forgettable, asides from the first single Two Weeks perhaps, but after a week or two the subtle hooks become more apparent... then you're hooked.
  19. RooblinK
    Sep 1, 2009
    9
    A pleasant diversion from the mundane nature of most modern music.
  20. SamT
    Sep 5, 2009
    10
    I'll admit that it didn't immediately grab me... I had to jump from "Two Weeks" to "While you wait for the others" for the first few plays. However, this is an incredible album that grows on you more and more each time you listen to it. If you've only given it one play through... try it again. The end especially is astoundingly beautiful.
  21. RyanB.
    May 26, 2009
    8
    Don't get me wrong - this is a fantastic album. My problem with it is that there are a few songs here that are actually perfect and show what Grizzly Bear is capable of. Both Horn of Plenty and Yellow House interspersed their "wow" moments evenly throughout the album, often putting them in the middle of songs that meandered and explored musical space for a few minutes before really Don't get me wrong - this is a fantastic album. My problem with it is that there are a few songs here that are actually perfect and show what Grizzly Bear is capable of. Both Horn of Plenty and Yellow House interspersed their "wow" moments evenly throughout the album, often putting them in the middle of songs that meandered and explored musical space for a few minutes before really opening up. The result was fascinating and consistent. On Veckatimest, they have split their explorations and their explosions into different songs entirely, and it's incredibly frustrating to me. After hearing a Two Weeks or While You Wait for the Others, both of which are pop perfection all the way through, it becomes harder to want Grizzly Bear to meander on a song like Dory (easily the weakest track on here). So ultimately, the opening and closing of the album are some of the best I will hear all year, but the middle drags in a way that other Grizzly Bear albums haven't.… Collapse
  22. JackL
    May 26, 2009
    10
    Simple, coherent, beautiful, and growing, it unfolds over repeated listens, album of the year here comes Grizzly Bear.
  23. MycroftW
    May 28, 2009
    9
    One listen is enough, this one raises the stakes for 2009, liked it better than Animal Collective.
  24. sergios
    May 28, 2009
    9
    Nearly perfect album, however, I challenge Grizzly Bear to experiment somewhere above mid-tempo
  25. MeganM
    Jun 26, 2009
    10
    Grizzly Bear
  26. JorgeB
    Jun 8, 2009
    10
    The best album this year.
  27. BernardA
    Jun 9, 2009
    7
    This is not as bad as Jim C thinks it is but it is overrated. Only a few songs like Cheerleader stand out. Yes, its a pleasant listen by no way is it that great as the reviews make it.
  28. garys
    Jul 30, 2009
    10
    Cool sound. Did not sound good on the first listen but really sticks by the 3rd time around. Cannot turn it off now. Powerful instrumental and harmony mixes in a very unique and original sound These guys have the same potential as the Beatles if the right things fall into place.
  29. MS
    Aug 13, 2009
    8
    A good album with some great musicianship. A little too 'polished' in places however.
  30. CurtisB
    Nov 24, 2009
    9
    Almost flawless.
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Awards & Rankings

15
#15 Best Album of 2009
17
#17 Most Discussed Album of 2009
21
#21 Most Shared Album of 2009

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
85

Universal acclaim - based on 36 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 36
  3. Negative: 0 out of 36
  1. musicOMH.com
    90
    Ambitious yet restrained, elegant yet exciting, Veckatimest is an endlessly-rewarding album which seems destined to vie with Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion for the title of the year's best.
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  2. Slant Magazine
    80
    The album dips and tips and ultimately soars as a result, Rossen and company having turned near-disaster into sonic triumph.
    Read full review
  3. Spin
    80
    Even as they feature orchestras, women's choirs, and Beach House singer Victoria Legrand on Veckatimest, the album is still an intimate, ascetic affair.
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