Grand Archives: The Grand Archives

When the brooding, anthemic Band Of Horses formed,

it was out of the ashes of the Seattle cult indie folk-rock group Carissa's

Wierd; now, Carissa's frontman Mat Brooke has departed Band Of Horses for

something a little closer to the first band, though a lot more buoyant. (Which,

admittedly, isn't all that hard.) That's partly due to Grand Archives' vocal

harmony work—all four members sing (most obviously on the '70s

rock-meets-sea-shanty track, "The Crime Window," more subtly on the wispy

backing vocals on the 90-second album-closer, "Orange Juice"), and much of the

band's material has a lightness of touch that works as a welcome contrast to

Band Of Horses' more searching aspects. Brooke still favors slow-ish tempos,

and a chorus like "Index Moon"'s builds in a grandiose manner, but he sounds

like he's relaxed and happy, and so does his band.