climate change and human connection are the most dominant themes in their lyrics for years at this point. i like that kings walk closes out this era since its such a primordial distillation of that. they boil down the anguish and lingering hope into nonverbal moans and simplistic poetry. i wonder if they will have anything left to say about environmental despair when they come back with new songs, or if that mood has played itself out with this cycle.
and sorry for mentioning again but still hoping to see something drop in my pm box at some point....
Last edited by pox on Mon Sep 04, 2023 10:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
still waiting for a punch; do yall feel like any meaningful detail is getting lost due to freebird quality? is it affecting your take on the sound of the record at all, or is it only negligibly worse than official quality?
It isn’t worse at all, it’s a real 320 somehow
I feel like this rip sounds pretty flat even tho the files say its 320. I listened once and can't wait to get the wav files on the 29th. Its a sick record tho. I'll hold off on a second listen until release time. Fall is here and AC season is here. Two of my favorite things in life.
I have it now my self (but link I used now is now), but if there is a fresh link and someone with it sees this, shoot it to me so I can keep sharing. Thanks!
Last edited by dio on Mon Sep 04, 2023 11:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I looped a section of the official single for Soul Cap and a section from the freebird (I don't have a link, I'm sorry. check soouulseeek), and i'm pretty sure the freebird is slightly lower quality. Less highs and maybe less depth/more compressed. I'm gonna eat some food and do another blind listen
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still waiting for a punch; do yall feel like any meaningful detail is getting lost due to freebird quality? is it affecting your take on the sound of the record at all, or is it only negligibly worse than official quality?
It isn’t worse at all, it’s a real 320 somehow
I feel like this rip sounds pretty flat even tho the files say its 320. I listened once and can't wait to get the wav files on the 29th. Its a sick record tho. I'll hold off on a second listen until release time. Fall is here and AC season is here. Two of my favorite things in life.
anco fits in very well with any season but they fit so well with late spring (im from chicago so truly like three days out of the season)/early summer as well as autumn. Fall WILL be kind now that it will be scored by isnt it now
About 10 listens in and I literally cannot find fault atm. Everything just clicks. If I was to do tier ranking stuff rn everything would be an A with the epics Genies, Magicians and Defeat all S tier. What a record.
I've been busy with my work and my baby (sorry for not participating in the 5 song thread after I entered, Foxtrot) but been checking in to look for thread bumps and figured it was time -- gotta make time to post for the album .. w0w !! Biggest let down is Genie's, an early favorite that just didn't quite have the juice in the end. hopefully it will grow on me.
It had been a while since I listened to Defeat and it still completely catches me off guard what an emotionally resonant song it is and I had my son strapped to my chest in his baby carrier and I was trying to go for a walk to get him to sleep and listen to the rest of the album and I could not help but break down and sob during the third section. It's the best song on the album by far.
Gem & I came out even jauntier than I expected which was a fantastic treat. ACAB obviously blew my top that they were performing a song like this and I cannot help but hope this is followed up on in the future and that's the reason they didn't bother to play it on tour (more likely it was too stylistically different to work into the setlist). Stride is probably my #2 or #3. I'll need to listen to Magicians again to decide that. Deakin's vocals are just so raw and *really* have that live quality to them that only the most magical of AC studio recordings have. King's Walk is a wonderful little track and I don't really get the insistence that it's just "College 2 - longer this time". Overall it's amazing but I think I like it pretty close to Time Skiffs (which was also amazing). Can't yet determine which I like more. This is clearly produced better but in terms of the tracks themselves Idk yet.
_________________ Oh lucky me / That sweet horse meat
They really do feel like very different albums in the end. Both packed with quality songs. Similar styles but very different execution.
Skiffs is the clean, bright, pristine album. Tropical, lounge, jazzy, exotica vibes. Psychedelic Pop that glistens. Crystal clear waters with some pithy Americana elements.
Now? nails the whole renaissance fair thing that has been a guiding theme from the start. Woody, autumnal, medieval, folky, psychedelic, mystical vibes. Dry and earthy also with some pithy Americana elements.
Another thought - something about the production reminds me of early AC, especially Ark. They both have that drier yet slightly muddy, mysterious, live feeling. The band in a room. Certain details very present and others kind of lurking.
Last edited by foxtrot on Tue Sep 05, 2023 2:10 am, edited 1 time in total.
My first listen was split up but I gave this a second proper listen on a drive earlier today. ATCAB was a total WTF moment the first time I heard it but listening through in one sitting it works so well and feels like a much needed bit of energy. The clapping felt silly to me at first but now I kind of see it as a bit of a throwback to their early days of just vocals and handclaps moments. This and Soul Capturer feel like they bring some energy this era has been lacking, at least on record.
Another thought - something about the production reminds me of early AC, especially Ark. They both have that drier yet slightly muddy, mysterious, live feeling. The band in a room. Certain details very present and others kind of lurking.
Agreed. I keep thinking that a lot of these songs feel spiritually connected to that era too, Defeat and King's being the obvious ones but also Magicians with its insane song structure.
Also some stray thoughts because I've fallen behind on this thread:
Soul Capturer is already a classic in my eyes.
Kinda feel like they blew it with Gem the same way they did with Car Keys but its still good. Broke Zodiac is the Panda winner for me here.
Genie's first half reminds me of early Pinky Floyd and the second half is good but I wish there were more lyrics or variation or something. It was a fav of mine for a long time but has fell down a bit in my own rankings. Trains Across the Sea version is still GOATed tho
Magicians is not one of my favorite songs here but I think it might be one of the best sounding songs of the bunch. The bass and bass textures are so rich. The drums sound incredible.
Defeat is probably the best song on this album and it works in the middle if you listen through the whole record.
King's Walk is great, don't know how anyone who is a fan of this band could say otherwise.
AC have always been really good at pacing and this is reaffirming that a lot for me. It's been reminding me of sj in the way that its a super dynamic yet tight record despite the fact that its like 20 minutes longer. im very content with where each song falls on the tracklist. i was 100% positive genie's would be the opener and when it wasn't i was a bit skeptical at first but i really like it after soul capturer. sc just works so well as an opener, its pretty modest but the way it sets the tone feels almost theatrical. i love genie's coming after it, it feels like the album kinda opening (did not mean to do that lolll) up after sc sets the stage. magicians-->defeat reminds me of frg-->fireworks.
magicians was far and away the most anticipated song for me and i am so happy it's finally here. i kinda have some demoitis, specifically with the blast version and the way avey's voice sounds when he sings "land" in the last section, that particular part is what drew me in so much initially and obviously with the modulation on the vocals it's a bit different but im cool with it. the harmonies in the magnolia part feel so fucking huge. the whole song still makes me feel like im astral projecting like it did with the blast version so it's cool to have two perfect slightly different versions of the same song.
atcab is so fucking catchy im obsessed. it almost feels sarcastic, with the fade in and the disco groove and the handclaps and the way it comes after stride. i think someone may have said all that ab this song already, my bad if that's the case.
very excited to listen to time skiffs and iin back to back, will probably do that tomorrow.
also i know this has been discussed a bit but what seasons does this album evoke for you guys if any? I get a lot of both spring and fall, some songs like magicians feeling a lot like both.
also, said this already but goddamn panda sounds so good on this. he sounded good on time skiffs but i dont remember it ever really standing out like it does on here. he carries his songs so well.
Finally spending some quality time with this one, in a lot of ways it's exactly what I wanted but in just as many other ways it came out very differently than I expected. Gonna keep it "brief," I have like 30 songs to catch up on in the other thread lol
Soul Capturer Wasn't the biggest fan of this one live and it especially confounded me as both a single and album opener. But damn if it isn't continuing to grow on me, easily the track that got the biggest lift from the studio recording. Was so curious what the intro was going to be like, first listen it threw me for a loop... felt a half-step away from some masturbatory classic rock "Sound City, that's it maaan" nonsense. But I think they've earned it when you think about the narrative behind this one... when you consider how they handled "The Challenge" or some of Avey's recent musings on "The Musical" I get the sense this record was built pretty plainly around the idea of “the process." If that makes any sense.
Genie's Open [REDACTED] I get it now
Broke Zodiac This is the one I was waiting for. Easily a top 5 Animal Collective song for me (yeah, really) and I'm glad they nailed it. At first was hoping it would have one of those lush pastoral intros like they would do live but as soon as the track times got out I made my peace with not having one. And then I still got caught off guard by the abrupt start, but I've grown to love it. Reminds me of that sick Blast Radio version. A lot has already been said about how good the vocal mixing is on this record so I'll save it for now...but damn is so great to hear the actual lyrics of this song. Love the AABB rhyme scheme, something so playful about it. My favorite on the record and quite possibly the best
Magicians from Baltimore Well...except maybe for this one. I loved Magicians from the moment they dropped it on me in the middle of a 7g mushroom trip in Richmond and it's about the only track that I've taken the effort to savor and not rinse to hell and back. And damn this one is just even more perfect. Can not even believe all the little bells and whistles on this one. That kick drum into fuzzy crunchy something or other in the second section is insane. And that tone...you know the one
Gem and I Probably the only one approaching disappointment for me. Really feel like this one could have used a longer intro where the instruments can build onto one another. And put me squarely in the anti-bum bum camp. It's the sort of thing that maybe could have worked if the recording was less immaculate but it just feels oddly tacked on, and they obviously didn't care to try it live (AFAIK) so I'm curious how exactly it came to be. Also always found the tempo of this in the boots to be kind of weird and stilted (assumed it was because Panda Bear was just doing a lot at once) but those same awkward moments made it onto the recording so I guess they are just part of the song. I imagine this one will grow on me over the weeks.
Stride Rite Love this one but not sure if I like it more than Royal. Lyrics feel kind of distracting for some reason (or maybe just how Deak's voice is mixed) but the instrumental is still so sublime, the spiraling pianos and all. Seriously special tune and I'm glad it sounds about the same as it did live last year.
All the Clubs Are Broken Look even though someone had already mentioned that this was a medieval Ariel Pink something-something I truly had no idea what to expect. And hot damn do I love this song, from the silly fade-in to those awesome Panda background vox. And really appreciate the approach they took to such a short song. It's less like a song and more like a fun vibe that you just live in for 2 minutes. Makes sense why they never played it live but curious to know if somebody more familiar with some boots can maybe pick out any bits and pieces that may have showed up...
Kings Walk Always loved this one and I'm so glad it ended up here. I think as time goes on I think (or at least hope) that this is really going to grow on the detractors. And it's the perfect closer for this album, which I think can best be classified as "the vocal album." Which sounds like such a dumb descriptor but more than once this record was evoking something like Starland Vocal Band. Except this iteration has Geologist, and I'm going to say I think this is probably Geo's finest work to date, like, ahead of Painting With or even MPP. This is about as "democratic" as Animal Collective has ever sounded to me but I can't help but single out Geo's massive contribution to this era.
All in all just an incredibly special one that lived up to the hype. I hope to be discussing more soon
Last edited by glenbeige on Tue Sep 05, 2023 5:14 pm, edited 8 times in total.
It's pretty crazy how ballsy this album is. I mean, we've heard bootlegs of the songs over and over, and kinda know what to expect with AC records. But I wonder what a casual listener would think when first putting on the album. The only song that resembles a traditional verse and chorus structure in the first three quarters of the album runtime is broke zodaic, which is also the (imo) catchiest of the bunch. But other than that we've got a very repetitive psych song that's half outro which only gets weirder by the minute. I love genie's, but when I first heard a boot of it, it took me a while to "get it", to even be able to unravel the melodies and structure. It's outro is easy listening though. Then we've got two absolutely chunky epics that run for more than half an hour combined. In 2023, that's ballsy af, and I'm so glad they just went for it. Most of my all time favourite records are the ones which took me repeated listens to really unfold.
AC have always been really good at pacing and this is reaffirming that a lot for me. It's been reminding me of sj in the way that its a super dynamic yet tight record despite the fact that its like 20 minutes longer. im very content with where each song falls on the tracklist. i was 100% positive genie's would be the opener and when it wasn't i was a bit skeptical at first but i really like it after soul capturer. sc just works so well as an opener, its pretty modest but the way it sets the tone feels almost theatrical. i love genie's coming after it, it feels like the album kinda opening (did not mean to do that lolll) up after sc sets the stage. magicians-->defeat reminds me of frg-->fireworks.
Agree! The sequencing is perfect. SC definitely has that theatrical curtain raiser kind of feeling. Works wonderfully. Even Gem after Defeat feels just right.
dansemanatee wrote:
magicians was far and away the most anticipated song for me and i am so happy it's finally here. i kinda have some demoitis, specifically with the blast version and the way avey's voice sounds when he sings "land" in the last section, that particular part is what drew me in so much initially and obviously with the modulation on the vocals it's a bit different but im cool with it. the harmonies in the magnolia part feel so fucking huge. the whole song still makes me feel like im astral projecting like it did with the blast version so it's cool to have two perfect slightly different versions of the same song.
He still nails the 'laaaand' bit though it does come across slightly differently with the effect. Really dig it though. I like the change from the rest of the song too. Really distinguishes that final section.
dansemanatee wrote:
also i know this has been discussed a bit but what seasons does this album evoke for you guys if any? I get a lot of both spring and fall, some songs like magicians feeling a lot like both.
again I totally agree. I listened on the 3rd day of Spring here which felt really special and perfect. Some songs give real Autumn vibes though. The whole thing feels like that the balance that those seasons have. Nature in a state of recalibration rather than a static extreme.
Just a bit of a long-view perspective post: we really just got AC albums in back to back years. We've known or predicted this would happen ever since Skiffs came out, but now that it's reality, and we've had the chance to hear both it's really hitting me just how special it's been to get full platters from the band in consecutive years. Imagine telling some AC fan in like...2015, when the existence of the band felt kind of tedious just from a logistics standpoint, that in the 2020s we'd get brand new AC albums in back to back years.
wrote:
Skiffs is the clean, bright, pristine album. Tropical, lounge, jazzy, exotica vibes. Psychedelic Pop that glistens. Crystal clear waters with some pithy Americana elements.
Now? nails the whole renaissance fair thing that has been a guiding theme from the start. Woody, autumnal, medieval, folky, psychedelic, mystical vibes. Dry and earthy also with some pithy Americana elements.
This is exactly how I hear the two as well.
I listened to the albums back to back last night and was blown away at the consistent quality of the tunes and the different vibes they give, while still feeling like brothers. They absolutely work back to back and perhaps even mixed up -- I'm going to give it a shot.
I seem to be in the minority that I prefer Gem to Broke, but either way, really happy with Panda's offerings over these two discs.
Been really enjoying reading everyone's thoughts.
I'm about 10 listens in as well, and can tell all those who aren't sold on "Genies"... it's by far the biggest grower on the album for me. I absolutely adore it now. Don't really have the words yet to describe how they nailed every part/decision, why this is the superior version, but ... the restraint is integral to not only the song but the rest of the album, that's all I'll say for now. In the same way it's integral they used the non-glitch version of Broke, and in the same way Kings had to be five minutes long.
It's pretty crazy how ballsy this album is. I mean, we've heard bootlegs of the songs over and over, and kinda know what to expect with AC records. But I wonder what a casual listener would think when first putting on the album. The only song that resembles a traditional verse and chorus structure in the first three quarters of the album runtime is broke zodaic, which is also the (imo) catchiest of the bunch. But other than that we've got a very repetitive psych song that's half outro which only gets weirder by the minute. I love genie's, but when I first heard a boot of it, it took me a while to "get it", to even be able to unravel the melodies and structure. It's outro is easy listening though. Then we've got two absolutely chunky epics that run for more than half an hour combined. In 2023, that's ballsy af, and I'm so glad they just went for it. Most of my all time favourite records are the ones which took me repeated listens to really unfold.
Yeh, its an album for the heads! They really went out there. So awesome.
This may sound reductive but it’s not— this is a true stoner album from them in my opinion.
Ya, wanted to say this as well.
This album takes its time, let's passages wander and chill and linger and sag and repeat -- sometimes ad nauseum -- and it's all part of creating this hypnotic, kinda druggy, stoned vibe. It's absolutely perfect.
It's pretty crazy how ballsy this album is. I mean, we've heard bootlegs of the songs over and over, and kinda know what to expect with AC records. But I wonder what a casual listener would think when first putting on the album. The only song that resembles a traditional verse and chorus structure in the first three quarters of the album runtime is broke zodaic, which is also the (imo) catchiest of the bunch. But other than that we've got a very repetitive psych song that's half outro which only gets weirder by the minute. I love genie's, but when I first heard a boot of it, it took me a while to "get it", to even be able to unravel the melodies and structure. It's outro is easy listening though. Then we've got two absolutely chunky epics that run for more than half an hour combined. In 2023, that's ballsy af, and I'm so glad they just went for it. Most of my all time favourite records are the ones which took me repeated listens to really unfold.
yea i’m really loving it these first few listens so far but i’m curious to start reading reviews and then seeing reactions when it comes out. don’t think they’ll ever get back to MPP popularity and acclaim but i hope this can turn even more people onto (or back onto) them than skiffs
Genies sounds a bit too sterile or flat or something... Idk. Reminds me of Dragon Slayer or Cherokee studio versions where I feel like there's just some kind of energy that just isn't there. Which is a bummer bc it should be up there with Defeat
And the final Sea of Light part should be an explosion of tempo and sound, not "ok, here's the last section I GUESS...."
Last edited by rohcti on Tue Sep 05, 2023 3:42 am, edited 1 time in total.
Some excellent takes on this page. Yal ow . And trust me after a few days, I think Genies will like... RE-grow for people if you just let it.
Also, some people really hurting for a link still so if there is a fresher link, let's get that circulating and I'll gladly do the sharing myself if someone gives me a new link. Thanks!!
Some excellent takes on this page. Yal ow . And trust me after a few days, I think Genies will like... RE-grow for people if you just let it.
Also, some people really hurting for a link still so if there is a fresher link, let's get that circulating and I'll gladly do the sharing myself if someone gives me a new link. Thanks!!
I hope so brother. Still a fun song even if it's not as earth shattering as I was hoping
And I did make a link myself but idk where to host it where it won't get taken down after like 10 downloads
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