Sinister Grift is the eighth studio album by American musician Panda Bear. It was released on February 28, 2025, through Domino Recording Company. It features contributions by Animal Collective bandmate Deakin and Canadian band Cindy Lee.
Background and recording
Sinister Grift was recorded at Noah Lennox' own Estudio Campo in Lisbon, Portugal. He co-produced the album with Animal Collective bandmate Josh Dibb, also known as Deakin.[3] Dibb described work on the album as a "sacred and warm return" between the two, combining "30 years" of songwriting together as part of the band as well as a "new chapter" for Lennox.[4]
Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 82/100[5] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| The Guardian | [1] |
| Laut.de | [7] |
| Mojo | [8] |
| Pitchfork | 8.5/10[9] |
| Slant Magazine | [2] |
| Under the Radar | 8.5/10[10] |
On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score out of 100 to ratings from mainstream publications, the album received a weighted mean score of 82 based on 14 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[5] Sadie Sartini Garner of Pitchfork awarded Sinister Grift the distinction of Best New Music and praised the emotional complexity displayed by Panda Bear on the album. Garner observed that the artist appears to be "falling apart" but is ultimately "cool with chilling" until it gets better.[9] In a four-star review, Andrew Male of Mojo noticed a "dubious uplift" throughout the record which eventually reveals an "exquisite melancholy introspection", sprinkled with "optimism" as well as "sadness".[8] The Guardian's Alexis Petridis highlighted the "striking emotional arc" as presented by Lennox, with plenty of "playlistable psych-pop" that "turns introspective".[1]
In a mixed review, Charles Lyons-Burt at Slant Magazine acknowledged the "affable and good-natured spirit" that runs through the album but also sensed that Lennox might have not felt "entirely comfortable" venturing "into rock terrain" as he did on the record.[2] In a two-star review, Franz Mauerer of Laut.de opined that Lennox became "weirdly predictable" and described the album as "boring". Mauerer added that the second star out of five was awarded solely for the album's "craftsmanship" and none for its entertainment value.[7]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Noah Lennox; "Anywhere but Here" written with Nadja Lennox.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Praise" | 3:31 |
| 2. | "Anywhere but Here" | 4:39 |
| 3. | "50mg" | 4:34 |
| 4. | "Ends Meet" | 3:21 |
| 5. | "Just as Well" | 3:33 |
| 6. | "Ferry Lady" | 4:42 |
| 7. | "Venom's In" | 4:52 |
| 8. | "Left in the Cold" | 4:37 |
| 9. | "Elegy for Noah Lou" | 6:15 |
| 10. | "Defense" (featuring Cindy Lee) | 4:35 |
| Total length: | 44:44 | |
Personnel
- Noah Lennox – vocals, guitar, bass, production, engineering (all tracks); percussion (tracks 1–7), drums (1–6, 10), synthesizer (1–6), piano (7), sounds (8)
- Josh Dibb – production, mixing, engineering (all tracks); synthesizer (tracks 5, 6), percussion (8), piano (10)
- Heba Kadry – mastering
- Paul Mercer – mixing assistance
- Brian Weitz – sounds (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9)
- Maria Reis – backing vocals (tracks 1, 4)
- Rivka Ravede – backing vocals (track 1, 4), artwork
- Nadja Lennox – vocals (track 2)
- Walsh Kunkel – lap steel guitar (tracks 3, 7, 8)
- Dave Portner – noises (track 4)
- Cindy Lee – guitar (track 10)
- Steven Lind – guitar engineering (track 4)
- Björn Copeland – art direction
- Rob Carmichael – design
Charts
| Chart (2025) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[11] | 67 |
| UK Albums Sales (OCC)[12] | 43 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC)[13] | 16 |
References
- ^ a b c Petridis, Alexis (February 27, 2025). "Panda Bear: Sinister Grift review – Animal Collective star's bad trip through divorce to the dark side". The Guardian. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ a b c Lyons-Burt, Charles (February 24, 2025). "Panda Bear Sinister Grift Review: Noah Lennox Dips His Toes into Uncharted Waters". Slant Magazine. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ Strauss, Matthew (October 15, 2024). "Panda Bear Announces Tour and New Album, Shares Video for New Song With Cindy Lee: Watch". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ Kreps, Daniel (October 16, 2024). "Panda Bear Announces New Album Sinister Grift, Enlists Cindy Lee for First Single 'Defense'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ a b "Sinister Grift by Panda Bear Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ Thomas, Fred. "Sinister Grift – Panda Bear". AllMusic. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ a b Mauerer, Franz (February 28, 2025). "Sinister Grift von Panda Bear". Laut.de (in German). Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ a b Male, Andrew (February 27, 2025). "Panda Bear Sinister Grift Reviewed: Sadness lurks beneath the psych pop sparkle on Animal Collective man's latest". Mojo. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ a b Garner, Sadie Sartini (March 4, 2025). "Panda Bear: Sinister Grift Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ Jardine, Ben (February 26, 2025). "Panda Bear: Sinister Grift (Domino) – review". Under the Radar. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 8, 2025.
- ^ "Official Albums Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 8, 2025.
- ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 8, 2025.