Grizzly Bear reunited for their first live show in six years last night (October 13) – check out footage from the gig below.
The Brooklyn indie four-piece went on hiatus in 2019, two years after the release of their most recent album, ‘Painted Ruins’.
In November 2023, a couple of months after sharing that he opened up his own therapy practice, founder and co-lead vocalist Ed Droste suggested that the band could end their hiatus at some stage, and in May this year, the band announced their return with news of a US tour in the autumn.
Last night, the band kicked off the tour with their first of five homecoming shows at Brooklyn Steel, and the setlist took fans all the way through their career. Their 2013 single ‘Will Calls’ got its live debut, while ‘Alligator’, from their 2004 debut album ‘Horn Of Plenty’, was played for the first time since 2008.
Another live rarity, 2006’s ‘Little Brother’, was played for the first time since 2014. And the show also saw their first documented performance of ‘Deep Sea Diver’ (via Setlist.fm) – likely the first time it’s been played since 2005.
They played many of their most popular tracks, too, including ‘Two Weeks’, ‘Yet Again’, and ‘Mourning Sound’.
Grizzly Bear’s Brooklyn setlist was:
‘Southern Point’
‘Alligator’
‘Sleeping Ute’
‘Mourning Sound’
‘Yet Again’
‘Cut-Out’
‘Little Brother’
‘Ready, Able’
‘Fine For Now’
‘Foreground Play’
‘While You Wait For The Others’
‘Will Calls’
‘Two Weeks’
‘On A Neck, On A Spit’
‘Three Rings’
‘Sun In Your Eyes’
Encore:
‘Deep Sea Diver’
‘Sky Took Hold’
Speaking to Pitchfork last week, they said that they’ll be switching their setlists up every night, Co-lead vocalist Daniel Rossen saying: “We’re trying to balance the songs that we assume are the popular ones or algorithmically favourite songs, coupled with more obscure songs that we maybe wouldn’t have touched at the time.”
Tonight (October 14), Grizzly Bear are set to return to Brooklyn Steel, before another three shows there on October 16, 17 and 18. They’re then playing two shows in Chicago before heading to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Oakland. You can find remaining tickets here.
From October 16, they’ll be joined by Beach House vocalist Victoria Legrand for a handful of songs each night. “Truly honored to have such a queen with us,” they said when announcing the news last week.
While on hiatus, Droste confirmed in 2020 that he’d left and was studying to become a therapist, though Rossen and drummer Chris Bear continued to work together in the meantime, including on the soundtrack to the 2023 movie Past Lives.
Rossen also released his debut solo album, ‘You Belong There’, in 2022, and supported it with a series of North American and European tour dates.