Animal Collective
Merriweather Post Pavilion
2009, Domino Records
experimental, psychedelic rock
I’ve mentioned before that I gave this album a listen because Pitchfork and practically every music critic under the sun adored it. When I first listened to it, it sounded like a bunch of frat boys got drunk one night and decided to make some sort of noise that they believed to be music. I was prepared to go to my grave believing that, but the lyrics tell an entirely different story.
For all their ‘frat boy’ sound, Animal Collective has written songs that are surprisingly mature and almost cutesy in their honesty. The bare ‘I just want four walls and adobe slabs for my girls’ from their single “My Girls” is a prime example, but that honesty just continues throughout the album. Knowing that some thought went into this album gave me a whole new perspective on it, and I’ve come to realize it takes some skill to sound so disoriented and collected at the same time. I wouldn’t recommend listening to this on repeat without being under the influence of an illegal (or legal) substance, but it’s definitely a welcome novelty in today’s music world.
“My Girls,” “Bluish,” “Lion in a Coma.”
myspace, last.fm
Portishead’s Third, The Dodo’s Visiter
