Animal Collective preview

Animal Collective
Vic Theatre, Chicago
Monday, September 10, 2007

Of all the bands whose sound wicks comparison to Talking Heads, only Animal Collective seem to have the spirit down (wildly ambitious and shaking nervously). But for the upcoming Strawberry Jam (Fat Cat), another distinct influence emerges: The Beach Boys.

Comparing modern bands to one of the greatest of the ’60s is overused in rock criticism, usually inaccurate, and unabashedly ascribed to musicians whose musical talent doesn’t stack up to the mounds of brain cells Brian Wilson fried in the studio. To bring up Brooklyn’s gonzo Animal Collective in this discussion seems to excercise that last bit of tomfoolery — where Wilson was a perfectionist hellbent on finding the perfect sounds, AC seem more interested in combining all sounds, warping them, and leaving us to sort through.

Any recorded similarities would have to fall in that hazy era surrounding the tracking of Smile, when Wilson self-medicated to the point of afflicting himself with a psychological disorder. But that’s not what’s going on in Strawberry Jam. What’s there is a much earlier Beach Boys, and it’s an isolated instrument: a very high voice singing “Oooo Wee-ooooh!”

Mike Love does not guest, but it’s that tidbit vocal tying Strawberry‘s storm of synths and wobbly beats to the world the rest of us inhabit. But there’s still a lot of sorting to do.

Eric Copeland opens.

— Steve Forstneger

Category: Stage Buzz, Weekly