[tealtimes]

Man, I remember listening to Bolder after mastering a boot at 4am back in Fall 2019 and was completely thrown at how wild it sounded

Listening to We Go Back on good non-phone speakers for the first time is tripping me out, this album and what they did with these songs is (yet again) something special. I'm really glad they sat with the songs for so long and put so much care into this thing

[roopn]

fuck I love your av seacrimes

[Murphspree]

Did anyone else notice these songs are getting pulled in different corners of your headphone-galaxy?

I think someone earlier mentioned caverns and I think I totally hear what you mean. It's something else hearing them drift off into the distance.

Wow.

[Tikwid]

So, caved in and gave the whole thing a listen:

Spoiler: show

wow. WOW. After two and a half years of living with certain versions of these songs, developing attachments to certain moments, in come these phenomenal new sound worlds to blow my expectations out of the water. The effects, the keyboards, the rhythm section, the vocal harmonies - all beautifully realised, especially the ones that haven't been heard in any of the live versions (the queasy beat-less interlude on Cherokee, the wiggly synth on Car Keys, the new outro to Passerby, the vocals in the intro of Dragon Slayer - I know I said it about Strung too but those vocals really reminded me of 70s Yes). Props to the band, props to Marta Salogni for the otherworldy mixing - album of the year for sure, and even that accolade can't begin to describe the multitudes that these songs open up.

[Salazar]

Can anyone shoot me the hq version?

[curleyswirley]

Yeah Marta Salogni smashed it innit

[Dallou]

Still have not listened to it.

Early listeners, is anyone not liking it ? or has a strong case demotis ?

[Lacrimosa]

I was already floored by the production listening the Vinyl rip so reading all this praise after the new rip is sick. I’m gonna wait for the release tomorrow though. Very psyched.

[evan6032]

Dallou wrote:

Still have not listened to it.

Early listeners, is anyone not liking it ? or has a strong case demotis ?

I think this is honestly the first time I’ve never had true demoitis, save for car keys these are all just more fleshed out versions of what we heard live and it’s amazing overall

[Tropic]

Yeah this is, I would say, the best live>studio transition they've pulled off. As long as I've been a fan anyways. I'm actually a little worried they've recorded the next LP in person haha

[bullseye]

Tropic wrote:

Yeah this is, I would say, the best live>studio transition they've pulled off. As long as I've been a fan anyways. I'm actually a little worried they've recorded the next LP in person haha

I would agree, this is the lowest level of demoitis I ever had for an AC related release and listened to the boots heavily throughout these last years. I've been around since before the release of MPP.
Even if they only nail the next LP about 80% as hard as they did TS, I'd be a happy man. The pacing, mixing, and production on TS are almost perfect, imho.

[Slippi's Applesauce]

Did this guardian review get posted?

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/ ... bum-review

Edit: and this one https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/review ... bum-review (8/10)

https://diymag.com/2022/02/03/animal-co ... bum-review

https://northerntransmissions.com/anima ... me-skiffs/

https://spectrumculture.com/2022/02/02/ ... fs-review/

[dio]

Imagine how fantastic it'd be to just see them play this strait through. ESP SWE. Live, that song really will be Purple Bottle tier energy.

Sprinkle in a few oldies and Stride/Broke/Gem and maybe Defeat encore and that's a dream set, mostly based on a single album's actual sequencing. And that probably is what they'll basically be doing in March.


Also I noticed: the 1st 3 tracks are so keyboard heavy. I would almost say its their keyboard album (not "synth" per se) but then SWE is way more guitar based. As a like breather. Walker returns to a synth-y (+ mostly xylophone) kind of thing.

And then Cherokee and WGB return to twinkly keyboard lines. So there's a big focus on lines Deak/Geo are playing (some of which I'm sure Dave/Noah had a hand in writing)

Idk, I love it. Can they make 3 albums in this style. I just think instrumentally, they're in an incredible sweet spot. And its actually amazing that we sorta know that there WILL be another album that has to at least mostly sound like this too.

Will be interesting to see what kind of different decisions they make approach wise for Skiffs 2, cuz obis they're not one to do the exact same thing twice, sonically.

[coral lord]

yeah they really did nail the production. it sounds exactly like you'd hope hearing these tracks live for years. we've been hearing them play it in a venue for years, now we're hearing them play it for us in the same room.

[dio]

You can play Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain right after this. If you want.

[kinetic]

would love and appreciate an hq link!

can't wait to hear the proper end of cherokee. what an incredible new set of fresh anco moments to listened to over and over and over again


i listened to the rip a couple times. man i wish i hadn't listened to any boots or singles. hearing this thing fresh for the first time would probably explode my brain.

['Worms']

has anyone managed to identify any instances of the "geologist's friend shooting a refrigerator with a gun" sample yet

[coral lord]

'Worms' wrote:

has anyone managed to identify any instances of the "geologist's friend shooting a refrigerator with a gun" sample yet

i think what happened was
"hey geo do you want me to shoot this refrigerator with a gun?"
geo - "yueahhhhhhh"

and we go back was born

[dio]

^lol ya, probably it

[wilandhugs]

'Worms' wrote:

has anyone managed to identify any instances of the "geologist's friend shooting a refrigerator with a gun" sample yet

who said this? lol

[muark]

wilandhugs wrote:

'Worms' wrote:

has anyone managed to identify any instances of the "geologist's friend shooting a refrigerator with a gun" sample yet

who said this? lol

Pretty sure Geo himself said it in a recent interview lol Although I still haven't been able to find it. The sample, that is.

[natios]

Dallou wrote:

Still have not listened to it.

Early listeners, is anyone not liking it ? or has a strong case demotis ?

tbh i have some demoitis for cherokee, i dont jam as much to it compared to the boots - i think its the mixing of the synth and drums as well as avey's vocal performance. although its growing on me thankfully.

i still keep forgetting some songs right after they end (royals and desire, dragon slayer) hope that changes soon.

[opposite field]

Dallou wrote:

Still have not listened to it.

Early listeners, is anyone not liking it ? or has a strong case demotis ?

I've only listened once but I'll say it i miss bolder

[mildew_on_rice]

Sorry, this is will inevitably be a massive wall of text. I’m sharing the mental imagery and the immediate feelings I get as I'm listening to the full album in high quality for the first time since a user demanded it as payment for the rip. Mainly for posterity but maybe someone will find it interesting or relate to it.

Dragon Slayer - The skiffs launch into a rushing waterway as a massive flying dragon soars over and between tall rocky jungle spires. There's a war starting but we're not there yet. We're ready and we're high on courage and fear.

Car Keys - We're now in traffic. The skiffs have transformed into coughing metal transport. It's a busy night in a crowded city. People with morphing faces stare at me, sending their scents of cigarettes, burgers and booze into my nostrils as I cruise by.

Prester John - I've stepped into a factory. A place that manufactures people or some sort of sentient being. There is an orchestrator of this process standing high above all. But the sentient beings rise up in defiance and begin to sing and plea to him to let them go. Where though? Out there to either save the world or end it.

Strung With Everything - Someone has asked us to gather together tonight. We're traveling way way out in the wilderness to get here. We're in the thick of trees somewhere in a mountainous landscape. We reach a blaze of orange light-- a massive bonfire. It's impossible not to take our shoes off and dance. The stars descend into our party and intermingle with the tall pines like fireflies. Worries about the world are replaced by love.

Walker - I'm alone now, stripped away from the crowd. I'm ambling along in some vague formless place but it slowly begins to materialize. A bright sunny sidewalk before me as I stride with confidence. I’m wearing comfortable clothes that fit me well and I feel like I’ve got a fresh start on something new. It won’t be easy but it’s got to be done.

Cherokee - That feeling of confidence has pushed me to a transcendent place. This isn’t inward or outward, it’s somehow both. Words have lost meaning. It’s like my mind is rifling through every file to pull reality back. I’m in a vehicle again, slowly trawling through a dusty village. I stop to have conversations from folks of all kinds that remind me who I am and where I come from. Tom Hanks is here for some reason.

Passer-by - Teleported to the farthest reaches of this world. I’m sitting still in heated pools within a temple. It’s been a long journey to get here. My body is failing and now is the time for rest. I feel shame melt away. I feel myself reconnecting with a core being that isn’t weighed down by the crushing expectations of modernity. I know I can’t stay this way forever but I’m here for now.

We Go Back - And then in a snap I’m shoved back into that modernity I finally had a break from. This time I have a better perspective and a fresher approach. I’m at a diner, then I’m in a deli, then I’m inspecting vegetables. The physical world has an organization to it that feels silly but I feel like a capable player in a strange and tricky game.

Royal and Desire - The road, the sidewalk, the waterway, all converge to a singular dirt road that ends at a white sanded beach before a sunkissed ocean. Sun is going down. I’m feeling as if I’ve had a million loves and my heart has broken with each one. But that’s how it is meant to be. I feel growth, I feel matured like a great tree that sees its own rings for the first time.

[muark]

Dallou wrote:

Still have not listened to it.

Early listeners, is anyone not liking it ? or has a strong case demotis ?

I was a bit taken aback on my first listen to Car Keys and thought for sure I had full-blown demoitis. Didn't have a problem with the track itself, I'd just become kinda obsessed with Panda's raw snarly vocals from the boots. His vocals are a lot cleaner now, which I've come to adore. The new synth addition is awesome aswell.
Every other track has improved upon their live versions, IMO

[dio]

mildew_on_rice wrote:

Spoiler: show

Sorry, this is will inevitably be a massive wall of text. I’m sharing the mental imagery and the immediate feelings I get as I'm listening to the full album in high quality for the first time since a user demanded it as payment for the rip. Mainly for posterity but maybe someone will find it interesting or relate to it.

Dragon Slayer - The skiffs launch into a rushing waterway as a massive flying dragon soars over and between tall rocky jungle spires. There's a war starting but we're not there yet. We're ready and we're high on courage and fear.

Car Keys - We're now in traffic. The skiffs have transformed into coughing metal transport. It's a busy night in a crowded city. People with morphing faces stare at me, sending their scents of cigarettes, burgers and booze into my nostrils as I cruise by.

Prester John - I've stepped into a factory. A place that manufactures people or some sort of sentient being. There is an orchestrator of this process standing high above all. But the sentient beings rise up in defiance and begin to sing and plea to him to let them go. Where though? Out there to either save the world or end it.

Strung With Everything - Someone has asked us to gather together tonight. We're traveling way way out in the wilderness to get here. We're in the thick of trees somewhere in a mountainous landscape. We reach a blaze of orange light-- a massive bonfire. It's impossible not to take our shoes off and dance. The stars descend into our party and intermingle with the tall pines like fireflies. Worries about the world are replaced by love.

Walker - I'm alone now, stripped away from the crowd. I'm ambling along in some vague formless place but it slowly begins to materialize. A bright sunny sidewalk before me as I stride with confidence. I’m wearing comfortable clothes that fit me well and I feel like I’ve got a fresh start on something new. It won’t be easy but it’s got to be done.

Cherokee - That feeling of confidence has pushed me to a transcendent place. This isn’t inward or outward, it’s somehow both. Words have lost meaning. It’s like my mind is rifling through every file to pull reality back. I’m in a vehicle again, slowly trawling through a dusty village. I stop to have conversations from folks of all kinds that remind me who I am and where I come from. Tom Hanks is here for some reason.

Passer-by - Teleported to the farthest reaches of this world. I’m sitting still in heated pools within a temple. It’s been a long journey to get here. My body is failing and now is the time for rest. I feel shame melt away. I feel myself reconnecting with a core being that isn’t weighed down by the crushing expectations of modernity. I know I can’t stay this way forever but I’m here for now.

We Go Back - And then in a snap I’m shoved back into that modernity I finally had a break from. This time I have a better perspective and a fresher approach. I’m at a diner, then I’m in a deli, then I’m inspecting vegetables. The physical world has an organization to it that feels silly but I feel like a capable player in a strange and tricky game.

Royal and Desire - The road, the sidewalk, the waterway, all converge to a singular dirt road that ends at a white sanded beach before a sunkissed ocean. Sun is going down. I’m feeling as if I’ve had a million loves and my heart has broken with each one. But that’s how it is meant to be. I feel growth, I feel matured like a great tree that sees its own rings for the first time.

cool man. This reminds me: this is basically the first AC album in a long time to be drenched in and generically coded as Fantasy. Tomboy to me is sort of a fantasy genre album in a weird abstract way, but Dragon Slayer, Prester John and sorta even Passerby feel very heavily coded as fantasy. I love it, its my favorite mode for them.

And we dont get it all THAT much ever since Avey sang about witches and chamber maids in La Rapet two decades ago.

[sound science]

Edit: Thank you

[Cooper]

Is this their most wet reverbed music ever? There’s at least a couple of feet of room layed thickly over the entire mix as far as I can tell. Especially DS and CK, they feel like theyre being played in a little wooden box ten feet away from me. This is cool but also the closest thing to a critique I’ve felt for the album. It just drastically changes the vibe depending on the listening medium

[TetsuoUnderFire]

Merriweather is probably their most reverb drenched album.

[dio]

I only get heavy reverb chamber vibes from DS's semi-cavernous vocals and SWE's verse harmonies actually. But yeah, SWE was such a weirdly revealing experience over time cuz the way it sounded initially and now is pretty different.

Some of the harmonies feel kind of dense, and super like evenly mixed, same as Prester's verses. Where its like there's no lead vocal line at all. A lot of Also Frightened harmony energy.

I don't hear much "wet" that you some have referred too. Maybe slightly in some of the synths

to me there's a dryness. Like a lush but relatively dry, SOMEtimes cavernous kind of approach. Its an incredible balance imo. Somewhere b/w PW and MPP mixing/rpduction wise, without even a hint of CHZ's mixing approach anywhere (save for songwriting snd instruments I guess)

[Hellomark]

S tier: Prester John, Cherokee, Royal and Desire
A tier: Car Keys, Strung with Everything, Passer-By, We Go Back
B tier: Dragon Slayer, Walker

All killer no filler.

[LeadHat]

Can't wait til it's warmer out where I am, cannot wait to listen to this album during walks on the beach or through the woods. Need to watch to the sunset as royal & desire plays... Looking forward to the memories I'll make w/skiffs. As others have stated, thank you all CA, y'all warm my heart and make loving this band even better!!!

[Cooper]

Damn you guys are gaslighting me or something. This music sounds intensely roomy. Like you can distinctly hear dragon slayer and car keys bouncing off of something within the mix. MPP was wet af but there was no echo. Aveys vocals on DS for example are directly interacting with some kind of defined space

Am I just not wrapping my head around the ”recorded directly from PA’s” sound? It seems to become more apparent the louder I play it

[Royal and Desire]

Hellomark wrote:

S tier: Prester John, Cherokee, Royal and Desire
A tier: Car Keys, Strung with Everything, Passer-By, We Go Back
B tier: Dragon Slayer, Walker

All killer no filler.

My own ratings

MIGHT BE MY FAVORITE SONG FROM THEM NOW
Royal and Desire

REALLY GOOD, UP THERE WITH THEIR BEST SONGS
Cherokee
Car Keys

GOOD, ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS
Dragon Slayer
Strung With Everything
Walker

NOT BAD, BUT KINDA DOESN'T WOW ME LIKE THE REST (NEED MORE LISTENS?)
Passer-by
Prester John

REMINDS ME TOO MUCH OF PW
We Go back

[Jam]

I have been baffled by the singles, but I also agree with the boys stance that they're all so good it doesn't really matter if the absolute cream of the crop (R&D and Cherokee) were held for the album release (save for Prester John). It's all Side-A worthy

[wilandhugs]

Galaxy Tier:
Royal, Cherokee, We Go Back, Passerby
Solar System Tier:
Car Keys, Dragon Slayer, Strung with Everything
Planet Tier:
Walker, Prester John

Yeah this is my favorite album by them now. Every song is at the very least "phenomenal" and at the most "revelatory".

[Hellomark]

Find it kind of funny that so many people have been comparing WGB to PW. The vocal tradeoffs in the chorus definitely remind me of FloriDada a bit. But more than anything that's maybe the song on here that reminds me of old AC the most, like Feels or even older.

[wilandhugs]

Hellomark wrote:

Find it kind of funny that so many people have been comparing WGB to PW. The vocal tradeoffs in the chorus definitely remind me of FloriDada a bit. But more than anything that's maybe the song on here that reminds me of old AC the most, like Feels or even older.

Same, I get We Tigers and Grass mostly from it.

[Royal and Desire]

For me, it has that quirky and bouncy tempo that was littered all through PW. When I sit here and dislike PW, everything to my ears sounds just a bit of a pitch too high if that makes sense. WGB reminds me of that, so those little droops and sillies just kinda bother me

[Jam]

mildew_on_rice wrote:

Prester John - I've stepped into a factory. A place that manufactures people or some sort of sentient being. There is an orchestrator of this process standing high above all. But the sentient beings rise up in defiance and begin to sing and plea to him to let them go. Where though? Out there to either save the world or end it.

Don't resonate with all of these images but this post rocks -- love this one for Prester in particular