Feels
Paw Tracks/FatCat, 2005
rating: 4.5/5
reviewer: s. kobak


There's a trend among most cult-classic, hipster-canonized albums: a distanced narrator. Sure we can relate to the Candys and the Stephanies, but can we relate to uptown Hipster poet Lou Reed? It is he who is on a pedestal preaching down to the masses. Same thing with suave transvestite from the future Bowie, rich outlaw co-opting Americana Jagger, and exploding plastic Stooge/Pop. The personae they create often loom over the characters they convey in their songs, and they fail to connect on a human level.

On Feels, Animal Collective speak of human experiences from the point of view of... average human beings. Eons away from the beautiful sound collage/barrage tunes of Here Comes the Indian, the songs on Feels are bare and direct. Each instrumentation evokes an emotion as well as a rhythm, and each vocal pattern reciprocates. There is a sense of unification within the album that finds Deacon, Panda Bear, Geologist, and Avey Tare functioning as an indecipherable whole. The guitar drones, tribal drum beats, and assorted Geological electronic complements are given equal speaker time as the vocals, accentuating the lyrics.

Lyrically, Tare, Bear, and co. present themes of jubilance, love, and melancholy that appeal to the very soul of the listener. Feels retains the wide-eyed child innocence of prior albums while radiating an air of adult reflection. Songs like "Flesh Canoe" and "Daffy Duck" abstractly etch love-y feelings and let the listener piece together the stream of consciousness, effectively creating a sense of ecstasy upon processing within the listener.

Album opener "Did You See the Words?" is a bouncy number with an up-tempo latter-day Talking Heads disposition. Tare conveys the emotions he felt from reading a letter to a clinky guitar line. Each time his vocals heighten to make a point, the instruments give way. Later, "Flesh Canoe," the lone wholly avant-garde statement on the album, features a vocal melody that goes against the grain of the instrumental melody, but which is nevertheless supported by splashes of piano. Falsetto choral hits underline the melody, which is further pushed downstream by windmill guitar and waterfall electronics. The lyrics present the simple joys of exploring each other's bodies in a love affair. Tare sings, "I'm just wondering what to do/ with yourself and me/ naked in the mirror/ of the bathroom."

"Bees" is a soft meditation on taking time for personal reflection and, well, bees. The song is furthered by what sounds like a harp (possibly a processed guitar) and the group's post-Beach Boys harmony. A descending piano line and subtle, chirping electronics highlight the disjointed Eastern-influenced drift-along. Both "Grass" and "Purple Bottle" are prance-along magic numbers that glisten in the sunshine of the unified band. The band's creative use of guitar effects and of the drumbeat as an integral part of the song work with unconventional beauty and love metaphors to solidify the festive mood.

Elsewhere, "Daffy Duck" and "Loch Raven" are both down-tempo numbers that work to effectively balance the otherwise giddy, adrift feeling of the record. "Loch Raven" is airborne with a sense of spiritual enlightenment through melodic chant and glistening chime techno unity. "Daffy Duck" features a fractured melody centered around a repetitive guitar line that peaks when the singer's voice reaches a sense of utmost urgency. The mood created lyrically seems like the singer is trying to get to the heart of a forlorn lover, wishing he had "volcano boots." He concludes, "What you need's a/ happy farm/ with happy goats/ and sheep."

Possibly the most profound statement on the album is "Banshee Beat," an acknowledgement of feelings of depression and helplessness that evolves into a realization that there is always an exit to ecstasy. During his opening revelations, Tare sings, "There'll be times/ to just cry/ and wonder why/ it didn't work out." After his admissions, a soft drumbeat begins to build and is followed by a rollicking guitar. Eventually Tare figures out that he just needs to "find the swimming pool," and the song is dosed with confetti-fall elation. The joyful mood prevails towards the end of the song and explodes in an outburst of ecstatic animal noises.

Feels is a psychedelic wonderland filled with life-affirming warmth. By taking away the extraneous baggage, the band takes another step in their evolution and a step further into the heart and subconscious of willing listeners around the globe.

1. Did You See the Words
2. Grass
3. Flesh Canoe
4. Purple Bottle
5. Bees
6. Banshee Beat
7. Daffy Duck
8. Loch Raven
9. Turn Into Something

Prospect Hummer EP (with Vashti Bunyan)
FatCat, 2005
rating: 3.5/5
reviewer: s. kobak


Animal Collective are on such a hot streak right now that the appearance of a vast army of player haters and naysayers is almost imminent. How can the band fend off such venomous leeches? By doing what the band has done for the past five years: constantly changing their sound while retaining their childhood sense of aloofness and wonder. The Collective certainly do this and more on Prospect Hummer, their collaboration with legendary, obscure English folk singer Vashti Bunyan. Instrumentally, Hummer is the meeting point of Sung Tongs' joyous fractured melodies and Young Prayer's rainstorm guitar strumming. Beginning with the lovely and haunting "It's You," Bunyan's voice ebbs and flows while the band trickles the sound in carefully after each line, seemingly afraid to cloud Bunyan's beautiful vocals. At the end of the song, the band becomes the yin to Bunyan's yang, adding harmonizing vocals and guitar while underscoring the song's dramatic finale. The only falter comes during the instrumental "Baleeh Sample." "Sample" seems like the Collective's attempt to recreate the atmospheric creepiness of their concert staple "Wastered" (from the split 10" with Black Dice), but it doesn't quite take root because of the unnatural spaceship effect that constantly buzzes in and out throughout the guitar strumming. Meanwhile, the other two tracks on the album explore that childhood sense of wonder and joy that has characterized the work of the Animal Collective. "Prospect Hummer" is a joyous acoustic skank that feels and sounds like a safari through a peaceful jungle. "I Remember Learning How to Dive" is a soon-to-be-classic song that bounces with a sense of elatedness while shivering with a sense of loss; it addresses both the innocence of childhood and the recognition of mortality. In the song, as well as on the rest of the album, Bunyan feels less like the focal point of the album and more like the fifth member of Animal Collective. Indeed, collaborations are usually never this seamless.

1. It's You
2. Prospect Hummer
3. Baleen Sample
4. I Remember Learning How to Dive

Sung Tongs
FatCat, 2004
rating: 4/5
reviewer: amneziak


Last year was a prosperous year for the four young Brooklyn gents known as Animal Collective. Releasing two new albums and re-releasing two others, we wondered if they were trying to retire early or if they just lost their minds? They basically busted into the scene head-on with the albums Campfire Songs, Here Comes the Indian, Spirit They're Gone Spirit They've Vanished, and Danse Manatee. With apparently no time to waste, the animals have quickly returned for another round this year. However, for their latest outing, Sung Tongs, only two of the four animals share the spotlight (Avey Tare and Panda Bear), unveiling a decisively more mature transition from Here Comes the Indian.

The two major releases of 2003 by this collective were Here Comes the Indian and Campfire Songs. Each album was aesthetically different, yet both were equally affective in creating a certain type of mood upon their recipients. Neither really received major acclaim, but they did create a spark in the underground and attracted many different types of music fans in the process; mainly those of the experimental folk genre. For me personally, I enjoyed Campfire Songs more than the other, which makes it much easier to compare this album to their Campfire Songs moniker than it does Animal Collective. Therefore, it only seems logical that I would prefer Sung Tongs over Indian.

The album consists of lightly plucked acoustic guitar strums and smoothly whispered vocals from Avey Tare. At times, you'd almost believe that you were whisked away to the late '60s. The major difference, however, and the reason this could fit in the Animal Collective mold, is due to its inconsistent song structures. There is no punk rock here and there are no rough edges either. In a lot of cases, the vocals appear only as instruments and rarely have anything significant to say; except for the duos hilarious play with words such as "mouth" and "water." And maybe the fact that they tell us "we don't have to go to College."

Holistically, there's nothing remarkably new here that hasn't been pursued before by this collective. The execution is nice and easily situates this album in the top two of their performances, and the sound quality far surpasses their previous efforts. I will admit that it didn't take long for me to realize that I prefer this album much more than Indian. If you had a tough time deciding which album you liked better last year, this will cure your uncertainty. It's a perfect balance of the two, and quite an enjoyable album to listen to.

1. Leaf House
2. Who Could Win a Rabbit
3. The Softest Voice
4. Winters Love
5. Kids on Holiday
6. Sweet Road
7. Visiting Friends
8. College
9. We Tigers
10. Mouth Wooed Her
11. Good Lovin' Outside
12. Whaddit I Done