The Dodos’ music moves in lean, agile sweeps, like a conversation between two friends who know each other well enough to develop their own shorthand. Whether on stage or on record, singer and guitarist Meric Long and drummer Logan Kroeber appear equally relaxed in their brisk exchanges, matching each other’s stoicism to the point that it’s easy to overlook the speed, stamina, and sharpness of their dialogue. There’s a lot of movement between them, little of it wasted, much of it flying under the radar. These qualities also apply to the path of the band itself. Over their 15 years together, and especially since the indie-folk duo’s beloved sophomore LP, Visiter, their consistency has been easy to take for granted.
This history comes into focus on Grizzly Peak, the band’s warm and vaguely elegiac eighth album, which could also be their last one. As Long recently revealed in an NPR story by Pitchfork contributor Grayson Haver Currin, he’s been afflicted by rheumatoid arthritis, perhaps exacerbated over the years by his athletic playing style. Though its lyrics don’t explicitly point to finality, Grizzly Peak sounds like a concerted burst of creative energy on approach to a resting point. The stakes are high, but the mood is anything but tense: Similar to the last album by the Walkmen, another remarkably consistent band with whom the Dodos once shared stages, there’s a hint of celebration within the big-hearted charge, manifested in some of the most plainly pretty songs the band has ever made. From: https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/the-dodos-grizzly-peak/
