Animal Collective - Centipede Hz

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The new Panda Bear EP was so great that I preordered the deluxe vinyl package weeks ago. Came with a 24 Bit rip of the EP and I assume the same will be handed out for the album. I might just wait to hear it given that I already own the damn thing.
 
I like the beats on Mr Noah and Boys Latin, but damn does he have to do that modulating Brian Wilson vocal thing on every one of his songs?
 
I think it might be time to put at end to my foray into the world of Animal Collective. I don't think I'm ever going to get it. What many people see as a blissfully chaotic wall of sound I just hear as weirdness for weirdness' sake. And I keep reading how great a vocalist Lennox is, but I just hear high-pitched warbling. I listened to Grim Reaper today and I can't say I didn't enjoy it - like Centipede Hz which was a bloody slog for me to get through - but there's nothing there for me to grab on to.

Oh well, I will always have My Girls.
 
And I keep reading how great a vocalist Lennox is, but I just hear high-pitched warbling.

This is the thing for me, too. I can't stand the guy's vocals to the point that they actively grate on me. He can put all the effects on the voice he wants, but it's not going to hide the fact that he has basically zero range or nuance in his delivery.
 
Downloaded the 24 Bit version of the album the other night...I'm not sure if buying the vinyl lets you access the 24 Bit EP & LP as that might have just been a pre-order perk. It sure is a nice bonus though as 24 Bit versions of a new LP alone tend to cost about $25 on HD Tracks...

I'll open the vinyl up later this evening and give this record a listen.

Regarding Noah's vocals, I think a lot of indie artists really can't sing. Obviously, imperfections can be worked out on the record, but it's definitely frustrating that so many hipsters just go along with it when they view a live show.

Case in point, I watched a well-filmed live clip of Ariel Pink doing "Only In My Dreams" a few years back on YouTube and any commenter that rightfully mentioned that his singing was terrible in that performance was crucified by everyone else. It's kind of a weird emperor's new clothes thing...akin to people just going along with any celebrity that attempts to make it in the music industry (like how every young Disney actor "magically" is also a singer for their record labels). It definitely devalues music as an artform as the public just figures anybody can do it. Doesn't help either when non-singers like Minaj and Spears and Lopez are judging other people's talent for $15 million salaries.

Anyway, Noah sounded great when I saw him play with Animal Collective years back. He also sounded terrible on the Tonight Show this week. People should definitely call it for what it is...a bad performance is a bad performance and most indie vocalists really can't hold a note.
 
I'd agree that there's a lot of "indie" artists who don't have the strongest vocals, and like Animal Collective/Panda Bear they get away with it by processing it and layering it under a mountain of music. But reading the p4k review of Grim Reaper they mention several times how stunning his vocals are, and they really aren't, to me, anyway.

And I would say that Britney and J-Lo are probably better singers than a lot of our favourite indie artists :shrug: (Cori will correct me if I'm wrong about that). And Nicki can fucking rap the house down, so there's that.
 
Panda Bear's vocal style and tone is definitely unlike anything else I've ever heard, so "stunning" does work as an apt description...but it's done via a lot of studio help.

Britney and J.Lo literally both can't sing whatsoever and lip-synch through their live shows. I remember Simon Cowell commenting in an early season of AI that J. Lo would never make it past the first round (ironic, eh?).

Concerning Nicki, she's sounded atrocious in live performances (she often does attempt to actually sing), but I'm more annoyed by her arrogance. Watching the "Anaconda" clip where she says the most asinine phrases and looks into the camera like there's some profundity behind it is probably the most agonizing moment I've had watching a music video...tied with another moment from that song when she mouths the god-awful sample from Sir Mix-A-Lot (which hilariously is the only bit of the track you hear in certain Spotify commercials after they say "Nicki Minaj" for one of their playlists). Pitchfork has never given a less worthy artist more attention than her...the lyrics are ludicrously stupid and the music behind them mind-numbingly dull.

"Superbass" is ace though.
 
It's also worth mentioning that Panda Bear is killer at vocal hooks. The catchiest moments of My Girls and Summertime Clothes are all his doing. Doin It Right would be extremely boring if not for his vocal contributions. He may have a limited vocal range, but he uses it in ways that make up the fabric of the songs themselves.
 
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That's probably his biggest asset...you never really know where his melodies are going to go because of that unpredictability...even after hearing the songs a few times.
 
It's also worth mentioning that Panda Bear is killer at vocal hooks. The catchiest moments of My Girls and Summertime Clothes are all his doing. Doin It Right would be extremely boring if not for his vocal contributions. He may have a limited vocal range, but he uses it in ways that make up the fabric of the songs themselves.

I completely agree! That's why it's frustrating that songs like the three you mentioned are so few and far between.
 
Brothersport? Summertime Clothes? MPP is packed full of great tracks.

But yeah, outside of that album and Panda Bear's solo work I'm not really into anything AnCo.
 
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