Animal Collective—Merriweather Post Pavilion
It’s a shame I don’t smoke weed anymore. This album demands to be listened to while high on a summer day. In the summer of 2012, three years after its release I fell into the psychedelic trance Merriweather Post Pavilion casts.
Founded in Baltimore in 1999, Animal Collective is 4 lifelong school friends known professionally as Panda Bear, Geologist, Avey Tare, and Deakin. Influenced by The Cure and Pavement, two members (Geologist and Avey Tare) formed an indie band titled Automine while in high school. The four friends would reunite in the summer from college and perform music together in the late 90s. The band fully formed in 2001, but initial tours and releases from 1999 on are now considered to be from Animal Collective. Releasing an album nearly every year from 2000 to 2007, Animal Collective had 7 albums under their belt by the time they began working on what would become their most successful album.Named after a concert venue in Columbia Maryland, Merriweather Post Pavilion saw the band reaching #13 on the US Billboard charts and ending the year on numerous “ Best of 2009” lists. Coproduced by Ben H. Allen and released by Domino records, this album brought the band into indie stardom and influenced psychedelic pop for years to come.
I decided to get high and go on bike rides the summer between my junior and senior year of college. Merriweather Post Pavilion was one of the only albums I listened to on these rides; it was blissful and terrifying. On one of my rides while on vacation in Maine, I got lost. I had gotten so deep into the music I had stopped paying attention to where I was going. The music took on a sinister tone at this point; droning on and teasing me, I had no cell service on these backroads. Needless to say, I made it home eventually and kept going on rides and listening to this album, but I was a bit wiser. It is great to revisit this album on vinyl without THC coursing through my bloodstream. While only containing 11 tracks, this album lasts nearly a hour, and it feels much longer when you are stoned. Each song on this album has a unique sound, but there is a unifying sound or lack thereof which ties the album together. This album was written and composed without the use of a guitar. The eclectic keys of the album do as much to accost your ears as they do soothe them. This album is organized chaos. The hit singles off this album are “My Girls” and “Summertime Clothes.” Both of these songs earn their popularity and acclaim, with entrancing beats and catchy hooks. There are songs which blur together, if “Also Frightened” and “Daily Routine” were not separated by “Summertime Clothes” I would assume they were one song. There is not a bad song on this album. As experimental as the band is, they never push their avant-garde tendencies to the breaking point. Audiophiles and casual listeners alike can vibe to this album however they’d like.
Must Listen To: Lion In A Coma
I assume the reader of this post has heard “My Girls” and “Summertime Clothes,” if not, go listen to those! Those songs are so ubiquitous with Animal Collective, it felt repetitive to recommend them. That is not to say “Lion In A Coma” wouldn’t hold its own against those two. From the didgeridoo looping, to the lyrics of an uncertain narrator navigating who they are, this song works on every level. This song is a triumph of what this album can achieve, if you can forgive the punny title.
