Daniel Rossen Releases Solo EP, Begins Work on New Grizzly Bear Album

Grizzly Bear‘s Daniel Rossen confirms that the group has begun recording its next album, but in the meantime, the guitarist and songwriter is releasing ‘Silent Hour/Golden Mile,’ a five-song EP of new solo tunes due on March 20.

Rossen tells Pitchfork that it took awhile for the EP to come to life. “Once [Grizzly Bear] stopped working for a while, I couldn’t really decide if I liked what I was doing,” he says. “That’s why a lot of this stuff sat around. I just wasn’t sold on the idea of even doing anything anymore. I forced myself to finish it, and I’m definitely glad I did.”

Rossen is excited about his solo work, which covers a lot of musical ground. ‘Saint Nothing’ is a sparse piano ballad, while ‘Silent Song’ is a melodic, acoustic guitar-based tune with harmonies and a hint of twang. “I would love to do more work like this,” Rossen adds. “The EP was a very refreshing challenge, and I hope to play these songs live someday. I just don’t know when that’s going to be. I definitely can’t do that now. I gotta be here with the home team to finish the record.”

The “home team” is Grizzly Bear, who are now recording the long-awaited follow-up to 2009′s ‘Veckatimest,’ which debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200. Rossen says, “It’s going really well, though we’re not far enough along to have many details to share yet.” In recent Facebook posts, the band has promised to have the record out sometime in 2012.

Listen to Daniel Rossen’s ‘Silent Song’