Down There

The excellent debut release from Animal Collective's lead singer/guitarist, Avey Tare. While it is easy to draw comparisons of this album to other Animal Collective work, it is darker, slower, and leans more towards experimental electronica. While bandmates Panda Bear and Geologist tend to focus on sample-based production, Avey Tare turns to a more organic atmospheric approach with earthy, muddy beats. Most of the tracks maintain a distinct dark sheen and haunting confused lyrics.

RIYL: Animal Collective, Nosaj Thing, The Knife, Aphex Twin

FCC: Track 1

Try: 3, 9 ,2, 5, 8

1. (FCC) A dark atmosphere leads into a deep, resonating beat with lots of accordion samples and glitch electronics. Heavy, emotional lyrics.
2. A thick, haze of xylophone tinkering, and bright sunny electronics. Like swimming underwater with a magnificent shimmering school of fish.
3. Abstract psych washes coupled with a relentless sparse metallic beat. Excellent.
4. A chilling bubbly drone. All vocals are distorted beyond recognition and are swampy and thick. Creepy as hell and cold as ice.
5. Muddy flanger sounds and a pounding laserbass beat. Confusing and experimental with a complex song structure.
6. A haunting graveyard romp through washes of drone and eerie whispery lyrics. The song ends with a one-minute soundscape of ethereal foundsound collages and stuttering keyboards.
7. A wobbly midtempo bass beat with lots of video game bips and boops complimented by clattered snares. The lyrics are layered and are smeared with an auto-tuned sheen.
8. More underwater-distorted ooze-tube electronic with panicked lyrics. Subtle guitar notes.
9. The lead single. An infectious grinding synth beat with classic Animal Collective layered vocals and smooth lilty keyboard lines. Lots of varied percussion—all sorts of shit is banging around in the background a la STOMP.