In Ear Park

The band, Department Of Eagles, are a duo comprised of musicians Daniel Rossen (from Grizzly Bear) and Fred Nicolaus who were roommates at New York University and 'In Ear Park', their second full-length album release, is an ambitious, grand project with music which could only really be described as undefinable. A mixture of experimental and traditional folk, thoughtful rock and inventive studio sound manipulation make this a constantly intriguing and frequently exciting recording which doesn't get at all boring. An inventive and unrestrained approach to structure and frequent use of less conventional chords make this a real delight for a musician to lose themselves in as well, but it never remains anything less than accessible and enjoyable. In fact, you could imagine a performer such as Harry Nilsson singing some of these tracks ('No One Does It', for example), such is the quality of the songwriting and beauty of the melody.

'Teenagers', possibly my favourite track on 'In Ear Park' reminds me of Mercury Rev at their best with its creaking strings, echoing vocals, vaudeville instrumentation and rippling piano. However, there is an incredible amount of quality all throughout this album such as the delicate, haunting title track, 'In Ear Park', the beautiful McCartney-esque piano ballad 'Herring Bone', the splendidly grand yet slightly warped 'Waves Of Rye' and the gently drifting 'Floating On The Lehigh'... all of these songs have a truly timeless feel to them and yet there is an avant-garde edge to the way they are pieced together and performed which makes them feel strongly up-to-date. I can quite honestly state that there have been few albums released this year which have held my interest and intrigued me as much as this one. Each time you listen to this wonderfully rich collection of songs, you hear something new and although it has been overshadowed by albums which have enjoyed much greater commercial success, there is every chance that this album will one day be recognised for the remarkable piece of work it truly is.

This is a stunning album. The Department of Eagles second album is beautiful. Imagine Mercury Rev with a banjo playing on dark, cold hill in November and you're there. Only those without a soul will get to the end of this without a lump in their throat.

Not so much a side project as a sister act to Daniel Rossen's other band, Grizzly Bear, DOE tread a similar path of electronica influenced folk and with the inclusion on this album of Chris Taylor and Christopher Bear from Grizzly Bear the lines dividing the two projects become even more blurred. In Ear Park is much closer to a record made up of songs rather than the more experimental sounds on Yellow House, although don't let that fool you into thinking that this is easy listening. My poor attempt at a track by track guide will give you an idea of the varied sounds and textures. It begins with the title track, a song inspired by the death of Rossen's father, plucked guitars quickly develop in texture and there is a pastoral quality to the track as the vocals come in, 'All of us walk a long steady line/And now that you're gone/I have nothing but time/To walk with your bags/Down to the docks/And sit in the grass/Right in your spot/In Ear Park'. The introduction of a piano and harmonised backing vocals soon build it into something larger, almost filmic. It is a beautiful opening. 'No One Does It Like You' begins with Phil Spector like handclaps and percussion before what I can only describe as do-wop backing vocals, although I know that isn't really accurate. Electronically layered vocals are employed on 'Phantom Other' which builds to quite a crescendo, I didn't know you could do heavy banjo! A grand sounding piano is thumped throughout 'Teenagers' which with it's distorted vocals and slightly off kilter melody is one of the album's stand out tracks.

'Around The Bay' manages to sound like something from the soundtrack of a Hitchcock movie, but with Spanish infused handclaps and guitar. 'Herring Bone' has a quality remeniscent of Lennon and McCartney, dealing again with themes of loss. 'Classical Records' has the feeling of a nightmare about it and some extraordinary percussion and things don't get any easier with the bombastic 'Waves Of Rye'' and instrumental 'Therapy Car Noise'. Melody returns with the sweetly sung 'Floating On The Lehigh' which in tune with its content, meanders slightly like the course of a river. Rossens's father retuns on the banjo chorused 'Balmy Night', 'My father told me/Never to run/There's things coming after me/I'm all ready gone/Out through the door/Through my backyard', and so it finishes.

As I said earlier there is lots of variety in the instrumentation, familiar to anyone who has already heard Grizzly Bear, and whilst it holds together on the whole the second half of the record isn't quite as cohesive as the first four or five tracks. Lyrically it's a bit of a mixed bag too, a little opaque on the whole. Given the depth of its musicality however, each successive listen reveals something you didn't hear last time and for those already entranced by the harmonies of Fleet Foxes and the layered folk of Bon Iver this album would make a cosy bedfellow this winter.