Today, Grizzly Bear’s Daniel Rossen returns with “Deerslayer”, his first solo release in six years. The single, which will be pressed an exclusive 12-inch for Record Store Day, finds the songwriter and multi-instrumentalist crooning over somber piano.
“‘Deerslayer’ started as an imaginary dialogue with the hunters I constantly heard roaming around outside my place in upstate, NY,” Rossen noted in a statement. “They were always heard but never seen, and a constant reminder that I didn’t really belong there.”
Although he’s been playing the song live for years, it didn’t “stylistically” fit on his solo debut EP, 2012’s Silent Hour/Golden Mile, nor on any of the projects he’s currently working on now. “But it still feels true to the experience I had,” he explained, “So I’d like it to exist in the world, and record store day seems like a great opportunity to give it a special physical release.”
Hear it via Apple Music or Spotify.
The B-side of the single is a cover of “You’re Crossing a River”, which was originally released in 2016 by Rossen’s Department of Eagles bandmate, Fred Nicolaus, as part of his Golden Suits project. Record Store Day 2018 goes down April 21st.
