Put down that SP-404 and grab yourself a beer! Panda Bear’s latest solo record delves into psychedelic rock and dub pop, following in the footsteps of the recent Animal Collective forays across Isn’t it Now? and Time Skiffs. The result is remarkably fresh – who knew the guitar could still sound this good in 2025?
Sinister Grift opens with a long lost Beach Boys track in “Praise” – a poppy earworm that hides the pain of someone refusing his calls under a deliriously catchy chorus that you’ll sing along to again and again (and again and again and again). He slows it down on “Anywhere but Here” which features his eldest daughter on spoken Portuguese verses. Panda Bear has incredible control over guitar and sampling loops; despite the repeating sounds running underneath the whole song, each verse feels different from the last, with delicate and intentional flutters filling in where needed. His mantras are firmly rooted on the grid, but in practice it feels incredibly lush and alive.
“50mg” continues the trend of melodic excellence with another rapture of a chorus (“I’m a factor in a fallacy!”). “Ends Meet” doubles down even further (“what else can i dooooooo?”) along with a grimy and wind chimey breakdown. Panda Bear slides into the funkiest song on the album in “Ferry Lady” which makes me want to walk around like a crab (someone you know is a Marylander).
If you’ve been following along, you might notice that underneath the catchy hooks and indie pop musings there’s a crushing mass of lyrics running through the album, touching on depression, lost love, and the pain of moving on. “Venom’s In” marks the turning point where the tone starts to match the subject matter, and things get darker through “Left in the Cold” and “Elegy for Noah Lou.” That venom is change – irresistible and unwavering change, ripping through him.
Finally, Cindy Lee’s signature guitar rips open the album’s closer “Defense.” Where the first half felt like a psychotic rush, and the last three songs the lingering fog after a long storm, “Defense” is the fiery conclusion, his last cry at the end of his relationship.
After hearing the first single late last year, I wrote that Panda Bear’s Tomboy would be the best old album for the new year. Setlist.fm proved me right, with the album taking up a significant role on the Sinister Grift tour. Rearranging the Sonic Boom produced tracks with a full band did wonders for the 2013 record, having seen the show twice in DC and and an electric set at Kilby Block Party. Other standouts were “Take Pills” and “Selfish Gene” – I pray to hear a full take of “Bros” with this lineup one day.
Sinister Grift is a strong departure from the solo material before it, but that’s Panda Bear’s whole deal. He hasn’t stayed in one place over his decades year long career, constantly evolving ahead of the indie game, moving onto something new just as the pack catches up to him. It was clear with Person Pitch and Merriweather Post Pavilion – time will tell how Sinister Grift will leave a mark on the music that comes after it.
gone gazing 