This is a Beginner’s Guide, link so let’s start from the beginning: What makes Animal Collective so special? Since the group’s formation, Animal Collective has continually pushed boundaries of what music fans can accept. The group brings unprecedented experimental music to the forefront of the independent music scene in a way that’s digestible and accessible to average listeners and musician counterparts alike. They’ve, in great part, inspired an unwavering movement.
Now you’ve probably heard the name Animal Collective before. You may have even heard of Panda Bear or Avey Tare, but how about Deakin? Or Paw Tracks? The list of Animal Collective side projects is lengthy, to say the least, but that’s not without good reason.
Since the group’s beginning, Animal Collective made a firm stance that the group would be deemed a “collective” to distinguish it from being a “band.” The distinction might seem nonsensical, but the founding members determined that anyone in the group should have the opportunity to come and go as they please – to flourish from side projects and never feel tied down by a title.
It’d be near impossible to effectively tackle the entire discographies of Animal Collective and all associated side projects, so let’s strip this down to the basics in alpha order:
Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion
If you know anything about Animal Collective already, it’s probably Merriweather. Digging deeper, it’s probably the track “My Girls.” All eleven songs on this album are pure gold from start to finish. The experimental edge is still there, but the melodies are catchy enough for any listener to appreciate. The lyrics can be thought provoking and meaningful to almost anyone, but the sounds creating the melodies are still strange and visceral when you listen closely. There’s no better way to indulge in what makes this band so beautiful than with Merriweather Post Pavilion on repeat for days, weeks, maybe even months. There’s no reason to be ashamed.
You’ll Love This If: You like melodic and easy-listening experimental music
Fave Tracks: Must I choose? Fine, have it your way – Daily Routine, No More Runnin’, Brothersport
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGQjyGT1-mc
Animal Collective – Sung Tongs
Sung Tongs starts to get into the weird part of Animal Collective in the best way possible. This album is much more guttural and abstract than Merriweather, but in a way that you can somehow still dance to. Take the first track, “Leaf House,” in which most of the melody is created entirely from snippets of layered vocal tracks from vocalists Noah Lennox and David Portner. The whole album is heavier on strings than Merriweather and is so strangely beautiful I can’t help but feel like I’m listening to something from a far-off place at a far-off time. That’s what makes this album so special. It’s raw and worldly while remaining entirely distorted and unique. A final tidbit before you go into this cold – the songs vary in length from less than a minute to almost thirteen minutes, so like anything with Animal Collective, you never know what you’re going to get.
You’ll Love This If: You like Ariel Pink, Atlas Sound
Fave Tracks: Leaf House, Winters Love, Visiting Friends
Animal Collective – Fall Be Kind EP
In the journey through Animal Collective’s discography, this definitely leans on the dreamier side of things. It’s easy to groove to while also highlighting the creative aspects of the band. Probably the most special aspect of this EP is the track “What Would I Want? Sky,” which is the first song to ever legally sample a Grateful Dead track. The song gracefully pulls from the Dead’s “Unbroken Chain” for a result so delectable even Dead bassist Phil Lesh gave it praise.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSmuzEzeAeY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRbBcniI1Ao
Side Projects:
Avey Tare – Down There
David Portner has been a bit of a vagabond in his musical career. He’s worked on a few different side projects under the aliases Avey Tare, Avey Tare and Kria Brekkan, Avey Tare’s Slasher Flicks, and Terrestrial Tones. Each projects carries a vastly different sound and each only has a discography of about one album. Down There sets itself apart, for these purposes, because it is pure Animal Collective to the core. You’ll find yourself, partially confusedly, swaying your head in bliss and abstract enjoyment. Once again, the vocals, no matter how distorted, are uniquely impressive over layers of melodies drenched in otherworldly synth. However eerily enjoyable it may be, Down There also works to satisfy Animal Collective fans’ in their darker moods.
You’ll Like This If: You always wanted to know what it would sound like to bring a herd of synths and pedals into a swamp cave on a cloudy day.
Fave Tracks: Ghost Books, 3 Umbrellas
Avey Tare’s Slasher Flicks – Enter the Slasher House
Slasher Flicks makes the cut for one reason and one reason only – it’s a bonafide indie supergroup. The band pulls members from past or present iterations of Animal Collective (David Portner), Dirty Projectors (Angel Deradoorian) and Ponytail (Jeremy Hyman). With a lineup like that, something spectacular is bound to be the result. In this case, that spectacular sound comes in the form of a classic horror-flick inspired album bouncier and more upbeat than most Animal Collective releases.
Listen If You Like: Any of the bands associated with this album or horror movies.
Fave Tracks: Modern Days E, Strange Colores
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_nHgrlZMCs
Deakin – “Mirando” Remix (Ratatat)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlynLxjcks0
As far as Animal Collective members go, Deakin (not to be confused with Dan Deacon – it really happens) has been pretty quiet when it comes to solo material. Deakin has done a couple of remixes to note, and this remix of “Mirando” by Ratatat is not to be ignored. Deakin stretches the song from about four minutes to just shy of than ten in a style that’s similar to, well, Dan Deacon. It’s everything you could ever hope for in a remix and is a refreshing digression from the classic Animal Collective sound.
You’ll Love This If: You love Ratatat, Dan Deacon, RJD2
Panda Bear - Tomboy
Noah Lennox, more commonly known as Panda Bear, like Avey Tare, has kept himself busy with solo work for quite some time now. You’ve probably heard news of him making a splash in the indie music world the past couple of months with the release of his latest album, Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper, on January 9. While the new ‘bum is certainly salacious, longtime Animal Collective fans will always hold Tomboy near and dear to their hearts.
Within Animal Collective, Panda Bear’s primary roles are to contribute melodies alongside Avey Tare as well as to provide rhythms. This dynamic is entirely apparent throughout Tomboy, which seamlessly highlights melody and rhythm in a way that’s irresistible.
You’ll Love This If: You love Ariel Pink, Ava Luna, and effectively competing melodic and rhythmic sections.
Fave Tracks: You Can Count on Me, Last Night at the Jetty, Alsatian Darn
Paw Tracks
You caught me – this isn’t Animal Collective and it’s not a side project, per say. Paw Tracks is the record label started by the members of the band and now racking up a catalog of artists including Ariel Pink, Tickley Feather, and so many more. Paw Tracks might require a Beginner’s Guide of its own, so for now let’s just close this on a trashy note:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ygLrJfPOUM