Animal Collective

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=zol2MJf6XNE

Just watch this.

I remember back in the spring of '05, I was in Lexington, Kentucky for a weekend and I kept seeing these signs for a concert at the University's student center by this group Animal Collective.  I knew the group, vaguely enjoyed it, but I didn't really "get" it.  Either way, I couldn't go to the show, so it was a non-issue.  I saw them play in New York in the winter of '06 during their Feels tour, and as I recall, I was mesmerized by their stunning live set.  I knew Sung Tongs and Feels, and their live set sounded nothing like anything I had heard on the record.  It was eclectic, free form, but always maintained the semblance of intentionality, that is, during the set, during long periods of sustained dissonance, it was evident that the noise was going somewhere, that the three kooks on stage actually prepared this noise for it to be used towards some more melodic, or at least structured development.  It was extremely unique and hugely progressive.  

Fast forward two years.

Animal Collective releases Strawberry Jam; I saw them on this tour at the Henry Fonda in LA in '07 and then at the Pitchfork Festival in '08. Both were fantastic sets, meshing old and new material, going through progressions of highly uplifting melody to darker, more tribal percussive sections.  Both sets, while extremely different, ended with a superlative 10 minute rendition of  Fireworks, the obvious standout track on the album.  I don't need to sing their praises too much.  What I found shocking was this noise rock band from Baltimore, whose band members resemble mushroom-eating hobbits, had struck it pretty big.  The LA show was sold out long before, and they headlined the first night of the highly successful Pitchfork festival.  How was it possible that such a strange band could make it to the indie-limelight?  Was that a good thing? A bad thing?

Well, I don't know.

Now, as we all know, Animal Collective is at the forefront of the independent music world, and their latest album, Merriweather Post Pavilion, was so highly anticipated that threats of lawsuits were thrown around as several tracks leaked onto the internet. I had the foresight to buy tickets to their show in Paris last weekend, to see what would go down.  Is Animal Collective different  now? Has popularity ruined that strange quality that made their older material so good? I was not, and I am not sure.  

I only got the album several days before last week's show, and I gave it a good, hard listen.  It's good, granted.  It is not great.  On first listen of Feels/Sung Tongs/Strawberry Jam, I was able to pick out a selection of songs and declarative state that they were excellent songs that I would listen to for a long time to come.  I don't really feel that way about Merriweather.  Ironically I feel kind of like the Bobby D fans at Newport: Animal Collective has gone far too electronic!  Now, let's consider how ridiculous that statement is, primarily because it is coming from me, but secondarily because I'm using it as a criticism of Animal Collective.  Geologist's role in the band has always concerned electronic equipment almost exclusively.  Of course.  There has always been a digital bend to their music.  But not like before.  I was originally drawn to the band because of their intricate tribal rhythm section and complex melodic patterns.  The yelping and the screaming contrasted with the tingling melodic buildups in songs like Winters Love and Grass beautifully.  Of course, bands and their sounds evolve over time.  But Merriweather Post Pavillion, following Strawberry Jam, has seen the synthesizer elevated to the definitive element in their music.  I'm not sure that was a good move.  It seems a whole lot more like strange artsy-electro than experimental music.  In short, I enjoy this new album and will listen to it, but I think that a lot of what made them so unique and interesting several years ago is evaporating as they follow a new direction.

Then, there's the indie-popularity they now own.  Take this video, for example.  In one sentence, this video is: "iPod commercial + slightly trippy cell-like things floating around."  Is there anything more to this? I don't think so.  Is it that I don't "get" it? Have I changed? (Yes) Have they changed? (Yes)  For the better? (err)  

The concert in Paris was good.  Unlike earlier shows, they focused much more on their newest album and only played several songs from other albums.  Their rendition of Leaf House from Sung Tongs was pretty interesting, and they kept the same long version of Fireworks for the end of the set.  Besides that, and an extremely lackluster version of Banshee Beat during the encore (one of my favorite A.C tracks), the entire set was from Merriweather Post Pavilion.  My Girls and Daily Routine were probably the standout tracks, and the transitions were at times awe-inspiring.  On the other hand, for a good deal of time in the middle of the set, I lost interest and didn't feel the same pull I have during previous Animal Collective sets.  I admit, I think my taste has changed a lot and it has a lot to do with me. But on the other hand, I'm starting to think that there is also something to the fact that the Animal Collective I liked from 2k5-6 has evolved in a new direction. Meh.