animal collective
Animal Collective Cancels European Tour Due To COVID-Era ‘Economic Realities’
Animal Collective has joined a growing list of artists such as Santigold and Disclosure who’ve scrapped tours amid rising costs, market saturation and the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The group has canceled its fall dates in the U.K. and Europe, which were scheduled to begin Nov. 2 in Ireland, after doing its best to push through “touring obstacles related to COVID and the economy.” In a statement posted on Instagram, Animal Collective explained that three of its members contracted bad cases of COVID in the past year, forcing the cancellation of shows and the loss of “large amounts of the income that sustains us and our families.” Going ahead with the fall dates proved impossible as a result of “inflation, currency devaluation, bloated shipping and transportation costs, a...
Animal Collective’s Panda Bear and Spacemen 3’s Sonic Boom Team for ‘Edge of the Edge’
Animal Collective’s Panda Bear and Spacemen 3’s Sonic Boom have a new collaborative album on the way. Out on Aug. 12, Reset sees them do exactly that. The album is comprised of songs that have been built off of samples. The duo released their latest song from Reset today. Titled “Edge of the Edge,” it features a sample of Randy & the Rainbows’ 1963 doo-wop hit “Denise.” The video for the song is directed by Danny Perez. [embedded content][embedded content] Last month, they released the album’s first single, “Go On,” which sampled the Troggs. The musicians have been working with each other since Sonic Boom mixed Panda Bear’s 2011 album Tomboy. Proceeds from the album will be distributed to a number of charities. A $1 contribution from each CD & LP sold goes towards Earthisland.org. ...
Panda Bear, Sonic Boom Hit ‘Reset’ for First Collaborative Album
Separately, Panda Bear and Sonic Boom are members of two acclaimed, left-of-center groups. Now, after working together for more than a decade, the Animal Collective and Spacemen 3 principals have finally teamed for the first collaborative album under both of their names. The pair’s Reset is due Aug. 12 digitally and Nov. 18 in physical formats from Domino Records. The first single from the project, “Go On,” samples The Troggs’ 1967 song “Give It to Me” in a move inspired by Sonic Boom’s vast collection of vintage American doo-wop and rock vinyl. [embedded content][embedded content] Panda Bear and Sonic Boom first worked together on the former’s 2011 album Tomboy and furthered their creative relationship on 2015’s Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper. The artists both live in Portugal, making i...
The 30 Best Albums of 2022 (So Far)
The following acts released quality albums in May 2022 alone: Radiohead off-shoot The Smile, Kendrick Lamar, Wilco, Arcade Fire, Sharon Van Etten, The Black Keys, Florence + the Machine, Harry Styles — we’ll stop there for space reasons. It’s been such a wild music year so far, only some of them made the following list. Maybe 2022 was just front-loaded and the final six months will be less eventful. (Judging by the release calendar, that’s probably a bad prediction.) Either way, we had trouble even narrowing this down to 30. Let’s meet back here at year’s end and see how things shake out. 30. Caracara – New Preoccupations Fans of classic 2000s emo — Say Anything, Dashboard Confessional, or Circa Survive, for example — are sure to find something to love in Caracara’s New Preoccupations (and...
Animal Collective ‘Drive Through a Certain Mist’ on New LP Time Skiffs
“Raw,” “free,” “loosey-goosey” — these are adjectives no one would use to describe Animal Collective‘s Painting With, an album so bright and intense it often feels like staring into a solar eclipse without the proper eyewear. Six years later, Animal Collective has returned with Time Skiffs, which feels more like gazing casually into a psychedelic forest — the scenery is more textured and detailed, hidden with colorful surprises. And, as the band’s Noah Lennox (Panda Bear) and Brian Weitz (Geologist) describe, it’s, well, a lot more “raw,” “free” and “loosey-goosey.” “It’s pretty typical with us for the new thing to be some kind of reaction to the previous thing,” Lennox tells SPIN over Zoom, making gentle eye contact as he swivels in a brown desk chair. “We’ve completely gon...
Animal Collective Announce New Album and Spring 2022 Tour, Share ‘Prester John’
Animal Collective are back. The group announced their first new album in five years, titled Time Skiffs, and shared a video for the first single “Prester John.” The colorfully cloudy “Prester John” video is reminiscent of the infamous Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd light shows. With pitter-pattering percussions, a bumping bassline, and swirlingly smooth vocals, Animal Collective pays homage to psychedelia and expands experimental-pop while vibing out next to one another in prison-like jumpsuits. [embedded content] Time Skiffs, which is out February 4 on Domino. It is available for pre-order now on CD, 2xLP, and digitally, including a limited edition 2xLP on starburst ruby and black vinyl via the Domino store. Tickets for the upcoming Animal Collective tour will go on sale on October 22 on the ...
Big Ears Festival Returns to Tennessee in 2022
For the first time in three years, the Big Ears Music Festival returns to Knoxville, Tennessee on March 24-27, 2022. Hosting over 100 concerts spanning various genres, the festival will have over 12 venues, and will feature films, exhibitions, talks, workshops, parties, and surprises. Headliners include Kim Gordon, Animal Collective, Yves Tumor, Low, John Zorn, Sparks, Meredith Monk, Moses Sumney, and Annette Peacock. Two large concert events are scheduled for the anticipated fest. Composer and instrumentalist John Zorn will present eight concerts throughout the four-day festival, with 14 collaborators joining him on stage including Bill Frisell, Stephen Gosling, and Kenny Grohowski. A tribute to the musical world of New Orleans, rooted in Haitian and Cuban sounds, will be the first t...
Animal Collective Change 2003 EP Art and 2006 Album Title Due to ‘Racist Stereotypes’
Animal Collective are changing the name of their 2003 EP, Here Comes the Indian to Ark, and are changing the artwork to their 2006 People EP due to racial stereotypes. The band out a lengthy statement explaining the reasons (besides the obvious) for the changes and apologized for using them in the first place. “With utmost respect to Indigenous people we feel that having the word Indian in our record title sends the wrong message by objectifying the American Indian people which is not what we were intending with the music,” the group said of the 2003 EP. A portion of royalties from that album will go to Seeding Sovereignty. They’re donating a portion of royalties from 2006’s People to Equal Justice Initiative as well. Lastly, with regards to their 20...
