In the lead-up to their new single, “Three Rings,” Grizzly Bear released a number of then-mysterious teaser videos. Those clips featured snippets of new music, as well as psyschedelic visuals (by Eaux Claires creative director Michael Brown). On the band’s Instagram, they were also tagged in different locations, like Philadelphia, Berlin, and Denver. With “Three Rings” released, Grizzly Bear have now explained the motivation behind the rollout. “The idea of the snippets on our new Instagram @grizzlybear was something we thought people would enjoy,” they write. “Our songs are usually so layered and dense and it seemed like a fun way to peel back the onion layers of the new album. So to clarify, it wasn’t meant to torture you but more meant to show you small pieces of all the songs from the forthcoming album!” Read the full note below.

Grizzly Bear’s last album, Shields, was released in 2012. “Three Rings” is set to appear on the forthcoming new LP. “We feel like it’s a good introduction to the album, a good starting point, and we are proud of it,” they write of the track. The new album does not yet have a title or release date.

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