album #23

merriweather post pavilion (animal collective)

It's funny, I think the main thing I learned from this album is that I am nowhere near the rock snobbery of some of my friends (not that I ever thought I was.) I have friends who are passionately fans of this album, and one friend who absolutely hates it. I come down feeling, "good, likable, interesting, but kinda redundant."

This is a band that I've avoided in the past- Katie played me like one, or maybe half of one of their tracks, years ago, and I was like, "eh, not interested" and have held to that opinion since then. But hey, this year is all about education. There's no doubt though, that to understand the arguments my friends have had, I'll need to listen to some of their earlier work, because it's all about the context of how their sound has evolved. The pro's say it's getting more ambitious, the anti's say it's getting less innovative.

Anyway, my own thoughts on this album: it's a really interesting sound. It's hard to imagine this sound existing in a studio or on a stage- it all seems to float in its own galaxy. The album opens strong with two tracks I can really get into. "In the Flowers" has this squeal, this hum of mystery to it. "My Girls" has a tightness to it- a little repetitive, but it sounds like a great, unconventional dance track. I love the chorus of "Summertime Clothes"- 'I want to walk around with you!'- such an exciting and yet sweetly naive invitation. Really does make me think of summertime clothes. One of my favorite tracks, I think. "Bluish" eventually finds a really nice melody, it has this affectionate 80s hum. I really like that one. "No More Runnin" is good, and "The Brothersport" is a really fun closer, it's got a bigness and fastness, tribal energy going on there.

I get a little impatient with it, though- there are slices of most songs that I like, but often the song as a whole gets a little too redundant or cloudy. Altogether I like this sound but I'm not sure I love it. Good moments though, good songs, and very well produced- I lean more towards like than dislike, overall. My tastes lean towards cleaner pop. Anyway, cool stuff.