Meanderthal was one of last year’s best records, one we selected for a Friendly Deal at the start of ’09, and praised over and over: We posted “Grenades” while telling you about main man Steve Brook’s work ethic and later passed along “Healer.” On the album, “Across The Shields” rears its catchy head immediately after “Healer.” If you still don’t have the album, listening to the two in succession will at least offer a tiny sample of why the band’s sludgy pop is so great. If that doesn’t convince you, maybe seeing Brooks dressed up in a bear suit in this David Kleieler-directed video will do the trick. It was shot last August, while they were on tour with Boris, which is why you’ll spot ex-guitarist Juan Montoya as one of four faces in a strange multi-headed monster suit. Should be a hit with Furries.

Over at MySpace we’re told this is the first of two videos shot on the same day in Angeles National Forest.

Meanderthal is out via Hydra Head.