Album Review: Merriweather Post Pavilion

Does the most anticipated album in recent memory live up to the hype? With unfair expectations, Animal Collective may have just pulled it off. Yes, it’s the favorite for album of the year on day six of 2009, but we won’t rush into any sort of ceremonial crowning just yet. Last time I checked, Autolux and Arcade Fire were in the studio recording new material. And Panda Bear could still upstage his bandmates once more with a release later this year. However, it will take an undeniable masterwork from any band to compete with the divine Merriweather Post Pavilion (or score more tracks on our summer 2009 BBQ playlist).

The album was officially released today on vinyl after leaking to the Internet on Christmas Day. Some are arguing that Domino Records was behind the leak. If that’s true, it’s an interesting turn of events, especially in light of all the Web Sheriff antics over the last few weeks. Many believe that it was all part of a marketing scam (with Grizzly Bear and Bradford Cox in cahoots). Whether or not it was an elaborate ploy to get fans excited about the release is not important anymore. The album is here! The vinyl release shipped early from many online retailers and includes some pretty amazing artwork, as well as an explanation of the record’s title.

Track-by-track analysis:

In the Flowers (Pete): The album opens with a pounding distorted heartbeat that pumps in demented rhythms until fading into a subdued harpsichord arpeggiated melody. This contrasts the voice of David Portner aka Avey Tare as he sings, “Met a dancer, who was high in a field | From her movement, caught my breath on my way home.” As the verse ends, signaled by hand claps and the sound of crickets, Avey Tare sings, “I walk out in the flowers and feel better | If I could just leave my body for the night,” as the songs takes off into a direction 36,000 miles above the earth with a dynamite burst of a full noise marching band orchestra. This culminates with the manta of “To hold you in time.” The running water samples that are prevalent throughout the LP makes the listener fell as if one is floating on a river of clouds.

My Girls (Pete): Formally known as “House” and “Material Things,” this song was my favorite of all the pre-MPP tracks that they played live on the Strawberry Jam tour last year before hitting the studio. The recorded version is mixed to perfection. Beginning with the casino-sounding bells, the off beat rhythms of this song are only outdone by Panda Bear’s vocals and backed up by Avey Tare’s background repeating of his words in his style. Both harmonize the chorus. This begins the theme of personal lyrics for Panda bear, here he sings about the simple things he wants in his life in Portugal for his daughter and wife.

Also Frightened (Pete): Starting with a sort of American Indian chant, the vocals swarm your ears with harmonized vocals, becoming an instrument in itself. This song continues some of the best minimalist lyrics the band has written (“And asking the question: Are you also Frightened? | No one should call you a dreamer”).  The song ends with vocal harmonies that push to disable any labels put on the band after each of their albums. The boundaries that categorize Animal Collective as psyche/freak folk (or whatever they are categorized in a given year) should now be dismissed. 

Summertime Clothes (Mark): This is the best track on the album (fomerly “Bearhug”). It’s the sound you would hear approaching the gate’s of heaven (if believe in that kind of thing); an ethereal soundtrack of the gods. The song starts with a pulsating (and rather mechanical) back beat that quickly turns into an exercise in melodic lyrical exchange between Avery Tare and Panda Bear. The interplay between Animal Collective’s dual lyricists brings the album to its high point, especially when the dual vocals are overlapped, harmonizing during the end of the choruses. It creates an absolutely beautiful effect and sound. The repeating verse, “when the sun goes down, we’ll go out again,” is the most addicting moment on the record.

Daily Routine (Mark): This track sounds like it could fit on Strawberry Jam (and that is a very good thing). The song starts with what sounds like a recording of the manual programming of the song’s repeating samples (similar to that of the live version of NIN’s “Echoplex”). It sounds like you can actually hear Brian “Geologist” Weitz’s fingers turning the knobs on his dual BOSS SP-505s to program the sequence. The sequence repeats faster and faster, until the song hits its final pace and Panda Bear’s vocals begin. The melodic delivery of the lyrics coupled with a techno-like back beat makes the first half of this song a real treat. The song then slows down to the album’s slowest and most drawn out point. The song structure is similar to Strawberry Jam’s “Chores” but never picks up again. “Chores” is a better song, but “Daily Routine” is a welcome retread to the style of the new album. Animal Collective have created their most diverse record yet.

Bluish (Mark): Formerly known as “From a Beach,” this was immediately one of my favorite tracks on the album. We get more water samples! The band seems to be obsessed with them lately. The song starts with a slow repeating drone and a toned-down Avery Tare (this is the antithesis of Strawberry Jam). The track gets all Panda Bear on us when piano samples kick in with Brian Wilson-esque vocals. I think this is what the Beach Boys would sound like if they recorded Pet Sounds under water. This is the prettiest track on the album and maybe the most accessible, especially for someone who writhes at the sound of pretentious masterpieces like “Peacebone” or “Cuckoo Cuckoo.”

Guy’s Eyes (Mark): Another “pop” song? If you say so. This song was formerly called “Song For Ariel,” and fans are relieved that it made the cut. Some prefer the folky version that Panda Bear has played at his live shows, and the addition of grinding synths turns it almost into a dance song. I, too, prefer the minimalist version. The song is still one of my favorites on the record and is further proof that Panda Bear was more of a driving force in the creative process on this record than on Strawberry Jam. I guess he just lost the argument with Geologist over the final version.

Taste (Pete): This song changed the most from the live version that AC played last year and while many fans write how much they miss the old version’s lyrics, the new ones fit perfectly into the album’s form. Again the harmonies are magical and bring the vocals a sonic quality not heard on Strawberry Jam or its predecessors. The lyrics get deep, as they ask the question: “Am I really all the things that are outside of me?”

Lion in a Coma (Pete): From the opening jungle sample the track is one of the strongest on the LP. Avey Tare’s fast spoken lyrics that were more prevalent on tracks from Sung Tongs return here with a chorus full of jarring tones that bounce off the walls. A subtle sample of a Jew’s harp is credited to an artist named Mpahleni Manquin Madosini, from her track titled “Yitileni.” She is even given writing credits on the song. Vocals from Avey Tare are strong here and create a beutiful balance of music and lyrical tones. The outro ends with the clever lyrical pun, “Don’t keep lying in a coma.”

No More Runnin’ (Pete): This laid back track has the vibe of “Seal Eyeing” from their Water Curses EP, only upping the bar with subtle tranquility. Again, Avay Tare uses minimalist lyrics to heighten the mood when he pens, “‘No more Runnin’ says my mind.” This track leaves the listener with a lasting impression that Animal Collective may have pushed the psych/experimental limits with Strawberry Jam and blown away any label of their music with this song alone.

Brothersport (Mark): Obviously, this the most danceable track Animal Collective has ever conceived. Imagine yourself at a rave where Bob Marley is the DJ. My 2-year old son loses his mind when I play this song. He immediately stops what he is doing, puts his head down, and bobs up and down like he’s been doing that dance for years. I recorded him doing yesterday without him knowing. Domino has claimed rights over the video recently, stating they can put ads on the YouTube watch page if they want. Although “No More Runnin” feels more like an album closer, “Brothersport” closes the album with an intoxicating track that will likely be one of the first singles released.

Animal Collective is playing a short list of major city shows shortly, including two NYC gigs that Fishpork will attend. The band has also been in the studio recently recording music for a film-project that has limited details so far. Avery Tare was quoted recently by Billboard: “It’s something new for all of us. It’s been a work-as-we-go process.” He calls the project a “visual record.” Animal Collective has released nine albums in less than nine years. Based on that track record, we can expect a release sometime in the near future. As with LPs in the past we might get a 12″ single that perhaps could give us one of the tracks that did not make the cut on MPP. Live favorite “Grace” was one of those that many were hoping would be on MPP, but as “Safer” was a welcomed treat on the Peacebone 12″, we may still get more cut MPP tracks over the next few months. And if that’s not enough for you, Panda Bear is set to release his next solo record sometime this year.

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