So 2/3 of Animal Collective's newest LP Strawberry Jam leaked. Reports of the remaining 3rd on Soulseek have yet to be confirmed by me (most are fakes). I normally try to resist the temptation of leaked albums but I've been starved for some studio-quality AC sounds for awhile now.
Here's a quick rundown of the songs that leaked:
Peacebone - Who doesn't know this one by now? I love the addition of some steel drums to the chorus. Pounding kick, bass, and a circular loop of some guy puking (I think?) makes for a great song indeed.
Unsolved Mysteries - This one really blew me away. Pulsating chords and bubbling underwater samples provide the bed for some amazing Avey vocals. The ending showcases some mindfuckery by Geo as well (can I get a Geo solo album please?).
Chores - Fantastic high energy opening reminds me of an acid-hoedown. The song descends into a gorgeous vocal coda with pounding kick and wispy electronics.
For Reverend Green - This one sounds quite a bit different from the intensity of the live version, and it has a new bridge. Jagged distorted guitar is mixed with high pitched chiming (a la "People"). This one deserves to be cranked as Avey screams out some very expressive refrains before the song picks up in the wordless sing-song of the chorus (with a little beatbox thrown in for good measure!).
#1 - A lot of people are calling #1 the standout track (and they haven't even heard Fireworks yet!). The song opens with some descending keyboard samples. Avey's vocals get a smoky treatment (a first for AC) with Noah crooning harmonies in the background. Unfortunately the chorus feels slightly buried in the mix (could be due to the low-quality 160kbps). And it's over so soon...I want more!
Winter Wonder Land - This is definitely the most surprising track. It starts with some programmed kicks soon followed by a full on dance thump. Have the AC been sneaking out for disco night?
Overall I think these leaks bode extremely well for the real release. I'm really excited for the other tracks Derek, Fireworks (omg!), and Cuckoo (sure to be a standout). What do you guys think?
someone want to send me some of these songs? i can't use soulseek on my computer and i'm going to be away for 2 months starting this sunday, so it would be nice to have at least part of this album to take with me.
Posts: 1115 | Location: new york | Registered: 10 October 2005
I've never understood how anybody can enjoy hearing the songs to an album piecemeal and probably shitty quality as well. Wouldn't you rather wait for the album, or atleast until the whole album leaks? Seemingly it takes all the fun out of an album when you've already heard each song in a separate instance.
I love AC, but I don't know their story or much about the individuals in the band. Any interesting AC trivia floating around? What methods did they used in the studio for Strawberry Jam?
I prefer to use torrents because I always get the albums complete, tagged perfectly with album art, etc.
But, if I can't fin something through a torrent then I'll go to soulseek (but I generally wait for a promo leak and generally the only time I can't find something is if it's a questionable leak). Soulseek generally has slower speeds (because you can only dl from one peer on any file) and sometimes won't be tagged right (some people just aren't anal about tagging).
It's leaked in its entirety. More catchy and pop driven then I imagined any AC album would be. Not surprising, however, after listening to Panda Bear and Dan Deacon's albums. You could just tell they have that pop-bug in them. I think this is a slightly less risk/reward album than Feels or even Sung Tongs.
I'm not a fan of Strawberry Jam. I downloaded it this morning and so far I only really like "Fireworks." It seems like a watered down version of Feels. I was expecting so much more from them, especially after Panda Bear's stellar album. I loved Feels, Sung Tongs, and Here Comes the Indian, but this record just seems like a charicature of what Animal Collective is about.
Vypa, Dan Deacon has nothing to do with Animal Collective. Josh Deakin is in Animal Collective and I don't think he has any solo records as far as I'm aware.
"Peacebone" is the song I was referring to when I said that the record sounded like a charicature of typical Animal Collective stuff. I hate how Avey's voice is much higher in the mix than Panda's and it's completely dry. Where Feels used reverb to mask the annoying aspects of Avey's voice, here they are pushed to the foreground. Also, "Reverend Green" might be one of the worst AC songs I've ever heard.
Panda Bear raised the bar with Person Pitch, sadly they couldn't live up to it. One of the reasons I like Animal Collective is their willingness to try different things. I love the fact that for three albums in a row they sounded like a completely different band on each one. I expected them to keep pushing boundaries, not produce Feels part 2 minus some of the aspects that made that record so brilliant.
Strawberry Jam isn't a total failure, and I'm not saying I hate it or anything either. I just expected more and I feel like they gave us a mediocre record instead of what could have been a great one.
Originally posted by jonathanbrisby: I'm not a fan of Strawberry Jam. I downloaded it this morning and so far I only really like "Fireworks." It seems like a watered down version of Feels. I was expecting so much more from them, especially after Panda Bear's stellar album. I loved Feels, Sung Tongs, and Here Comes the Indian, but this record just seems like a charicature of what Animal Collective is about.
Vypa, Dan Deacon has nothing to do with Animal Collective. Josh Deakin is in Animal Collective and I don't think he has any solo records as far as I'm aware.
If you can look through your computer screen you'd see my foot being inserted into my mouth. Thanks, I just assumed when I saw the name "Deacon" and then listened to the type of music he put out that was an Animal Collective member. That's what I get for assuming.
@jb: I really don't think you are giving AC the benefit of the doubt here. Feels is an incredible album but I think they have since moved on from the hazy reverbed sound that made that record so incredible. Strawberry Jam is much more focused on tight songwriting, interesting sampling, and more expressive vocals. I understand that Avey's voice is a little harsher due to the absence of reverb and falsetto (however there is a slight return to this style on Cuckoo), but I have grown to like the change. I really would not have preferred the vocals to remain stagnant all this time. The People EP is a great example of the transition between their formless guitar-strum (People/Banshee Beat etc..) and their newer more energetic, frenetic pop (Tikwid/Peacebone). I think SJ encapsulates and refines a lot of their creative tendencies into a great record with little to no missteps (perhaps Winter Wonder Land). It is concise, doing away with previous indulgences like Flesh Canoe or Visiting Friends. While I love all of AC's albums and it is very hard to pick a favorite I can see SJ as the next step in AC's songwriting. Of course with the proper albums one is always a step behind, and their newest live material looks to be yet another transformation of their style. Is SJ Feels 2 as you stated? Of course not! If AC have anything in common with other schizophrenic bands like Liars, it is that they refuse to remain the same. Oh and off topic: I love the new Liars s/t.
I agree with you JB, the new album sounds sort of like Animal Collective lite, definetely poppier and more accesible than their earlier efforts. Normally this would bother me as I am more into Avant Garde stuff than poppier stuff like Strawberry Jam, however I am enjoying this record a ton. I don't think I will end up liking it more than Feels or Here Comes the Indian (or Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished for that matter) but I do like it more than Sung Tongs (which I like, but thought was overrated.) Normally I would groan over a band such as Animal Collective moving into a more accessible territory, but in this case I think they pulled it of extremely well and I am enjoying it a lot.
One thing I do miss about this record is the longer, more ambient peices that were featured on their other albums, which most people didn't like, but I always thought that was Animal Collective at their best. Another problem I have with this record is the production, I think it is done too clean, and definetely think more reverb would sound better, this is especially evident in Peacebone.
a) So, "Tasty Strawberry Jam" is more accessible than "Feels" b) Is it more Panda Bear looping sonics, or tribal AC spazz out sonics? c) Should I give it a listen?
I've only seen glimmers of greatness in AC so far. I like the first two tracks off Sung Tongs, the first song of Feels, and I love Panda Bear's latest record. But I can never take a whole album does of the band at once.
I think you should definetely give it a listen. To answer your question, no it's not tribal, I suppose it's more Panda Bear looping sonics, but much more progressive than Person Pitch. There are no real "boring" songs on the album, mostly just spastic AC pop songs. Give it a try, judging by what you liked off their previous albums, I think you'll like it.
