In this, the second track made available from his forthcoming solo debut (the first being the ethereal “Saint Nothing”), Daniel Rossen isolates his ingredients from the Grizzly Bear stew to heart-stopping effect. “Silent Song” takes a basic roots rock set-up (lazy drums, bouncing bass, briskly strummed acoustic and electric guitars) and channels it into a very particular brand of pop deconstructionism. Fragmentary group chants and clever time signature switch-ups collide with a lofty, purely cathartic melody in the verses. The contrasting middle section is a showcase for Rossen’s now-signature ghostly vocals and muted church-echo guitar. It’s like unearthing a long-lost Neil Young cover of a Smile outtake.
But really what else could we expect from this guy, right? Both his main band and his side project, Department of Eagles, have been consistently serving up platters of pure gold for forever. Give it a few more years and a release of this magnitude will seem commonplace. Reviews will amount to, “Here’s another amazingly great one from these guys…who cares?” But despite the possibility of their being taken for granted in these times of finicky Internet fandom, it’s becoming increasingly clear that Rossen and his cohorts are the real deal. They’re great songwriters, brilliant stylists, and legitimate innovators in the field of four-piece “rock” music. I might advise them to take it down a notch if I weren’t so excited to hear what comes next.