After releasing their highly praised Merriweather Post Pavilion last January, most of us expected Animal Collective to ride their “Best of 2009” nominations and coast into next year at least.  No one would blame them, either.  But I suppose that would make them a different type of band than they are.  Despite being on tour in support of the full length LP this year, they haven’t stopped blending those electronic psych-jungle sounds and tribal beats into melted pop sensations, resulting in some live favorites.  They turned those twenty-seven minutes of new material into a new EP, titled Fall Be Kind.  Produced by Ben Allen, recorded at Sweet Tea Recording Studio and Mission Sound, and fast tracked to release before the year’s end it is a play on the phrase “fall behind.”

“Graze” gently and hypnotically opens the five-song EP, entrancing listeners with the group’s sound until about the 3:15 mark, where it gets cuckoo, exhibiting their eclecticism and knack for abrupt shifts in melody and rhythm in a single track.  The song establishes that the EP isn’t simply a continuation of the Merriweather album; Fall Be Kind is its own entity to be reckoned with, not just a collection of B-side throwaways. “What Would I Want? Sky” was perhaps the most anticipated track from this collection purely because it includes the first-ever licensed Grateful Dead sample.  The song does not disappoint.  Deadheads might appreciate AnCo’s use of “Unbroken Chain” and the song’s neo-jam band style. The second half of the song sounds like its own mix of pop and R&B using the sample as an intersection.  Other highlight “On a Highway” evokes a sublime road trip that every Generation Y college student fantasizes about.

If Fall Be Kind is a sign of Animal Collective’s commitment to their newer-found electronic elements, then fans can stay nostalgic of pre-Merriweather days.  Breaking into a new realm of success, this EP showcases the group’s talent in constructing new ways of accessibility to accommodate all audiences.  It will be interesting to see AnCo’s next foray in surprising the masses with their tendency to constantly experiment with their ever-evolving signature sound. This EP is hardly a labor of love, yet it’s still a very real, competitive release, which means they could be established as a staple band of this generation.  Check out these five tracks to hold you off in anticipation of what their next full length will sonically shock you with.

Taken by Trees - "East of Eden"

Clocking in at a short, but sweet thirty-two minutes, Taken By Trees’ new LP, East of Eden, is certainly not something to write off.  But you can’t really expect much less from Swedish singer-songwriter Victoria Bergsman.  Formerly the vocalist of the pop act, The Concretes, she has since been concentrating on her solo Taken By Trees moniker and gained some wide recognition through her guest vocals on Peter Bjorn and John’s “Young Folks”. East of Eden is her second solo album and this time she draws from cross-cultural influences by recording in Pakistan, hence the title’s biblical reference.

“Anna” could easily be perceived as an automatic fan favorite because anything that falls even near Animal Collective’s halo effect of success would be blasphemous to reject.  So this track featuring collaboration between Panda Bear (Animal Collective) and Victoria garners some increased attention.  Deservedly so too, because it seems as their chemistry are unanimously inspired to produce layered, ethereal qualities.  Bergsman seems to take an intermission from her some of her duties in the middle of the album.  In “Tidens Gang”, she sings in her natural Swedish tongue, in a melodic, but downhearted tone.  “Wapas Karnas” follows as what seems to be a field recording of the music that she inhabited with during her time in Pakistan.  After that, you’re in for a surprise – another Animal Collective-related track.  This time it’s a reinterpretation of the hit “My Girls” into the tropical paradox that is “My Boys”.  Surprising that there would be a cover of an AnCo song considering there are only nine tracks on the album, but it’s a somewhat pleasing lighthearted alternative to the original, despite lacking lyrical appropriateness with style.  “Day By Day” plays in a celebratory religious fashion album accompanied by repetitive hum-chants and tender vocals.  Bergsman drones off to conclude East of Eden in “Belkannelse”.

The album has a cohesive spiritual sound that will soothe and push listeners toward a lost, but reflective state, conjuring up a feeling of transcendence that is very difficult to achieve for a musician.  However, Bergsman seems to artificially incorporate the cultural influences of her Pakistani surroundings in one dedicated song (“Wapas Karnas”) rather then inject them directly into her own tracks’ rhythms and instrumentation.  Also, the album lacks a lyrical consistency of a specific theme, causing some contradictions with her metaphysical chords.  Overall, East of Eden is well produced by emphasizing its strength in complementary melodic layers and short, but sweet compilation.

Rating: 7/10

Released September 8, 2009 on Rough Trade

Release: September 15, 2009 on Dream On, G.O.O.D., Universal Motown

This is quite an ambitious Hip Hop debut.   Scott Mescudi, better known as Kid Cudi, has released his anticipated first full length, Man on the Moon: The End of Day, following the hype generated by his mixtape earlier this year, A Kid Named Cudi.  This is a concept album based upon Cudi’s cosmic journey spanning five acts, borrowing a page from Bowie, maybe.  His resourcefulness shows by collaborating with Kanye, Common, MGMT, and Ratatat.
It’s very surprising that a lesser-established artist can gain Cudi’s amount of credibility before even putting out an LP. In songs like “Soundtrack 2 My Life” and “Heart of a Lion”, he flexes his lyrical muscles, showing he is able to hold his own when rapping about personal issues, such as childhood, mortality, and staying vigorous.  Man on the Moon is not just a Hip Hop album.  It channels neo-psychedelic, space rock influenced, electro-hop. The Ratatat produced tracks, “Alive” and “The Pursuit of Happiness” find they are naturally accustomed to the astronomical concept theme.  The latter of the two is actually the third single and features psych-synth pop stars, MGMT, contributing chorus vocals.  “CuDi Zone” also proves he can aggressively flow, impressing those who may have rejected his melancholic smash hit “Day N’ Nite” (the Crookers remix is worth checking out and is available on the deluxe LP). “Up, Up & Away” ends Man on the Moon in the final act with a very optimistic, uplifting beat.  It leaves listeners joyful and wanting more.
Kid Cudi’s debut album is not a joke. It is the kind of hip-hop album that has wide appeal, while still being progressive in the genre.  Its eagerness to force an evolution away from stale beats will inspire.  The collaborators and producers clearly had much to do with that.  The only major complaints are the ones that emerge strictly because this project strived so much.  At times, some tracks seemed not entirely fitted in the celestial premise, but existed more to act as crowd pleasers.  Thus, lyric topics are often the same individual laments heard in mainstream Hip Hop (albeit Cudi seems more existentially tormented than most).  Man on the Moon: The End of Day is a leap for a genre in need of a revival and Kid Cudi delivers an adventure and album to jumpstart it.

Grizzly Bear – Veckatimist – released May 26, 2009 on Warp Records

Often described as freak-folk, experimental indie rock, Grizzly Bear has followed up to their acclaimed Yellow House album with the highly anticipated Veckatimist. They have tweaked their sound to result in a well-crafted accessible pop album. The band themselves have recognized this too, with drummer Christopher Bear saying, “I think that it’s kinda clearer, clearer equals more accessible I feel like clearer equals more accessible in general as a rule.” The second track, “Two Weeks”, which is also their first single for Veckatimist, is fantastic summation of the sound of this album in roughly four minutes. Its pop vocal harmonies weaving in and out between high pitch keyboard punches make for a unique song conveying the common problem of being stuck in a “routine malaise”. This track’s undeniable accessibility compared to previously released Grizzly Bear material signifies the group’s active progression into pop-oriented sound while still keeping their original folksy complexities. Another track, “Cheerleader”, showcases some more ghostly harmonies with some Phil Spector-esque production. It almost sounds as if a Spector girl group slowed their sound down and still utilized that very rich, full “wall of sound” technique to record, which also makes it very Yellow House-like. “Ready, Able” is one of the darker melodies off of the album that seems to deal with the admittance of terrible guilt and then living with it on one’s own. The song form fittingly creates a haunting build up of layered instrumental tracks until it hits a climatic crescendo of a bridge where it slowly falls. “While You Wait for the Others” seems to be an overtly existential bit about the deterioration of the human relationship. With lyrics like “While you wait for the others to make it all worthwhile / All your useless pretensions are weighing on my time / You could beg for forgiveness as long as you like”, the band isn’t writing about overly complicated topics, but some major life issues that relate to a large audience, which is perhaps one of the most important characteristics of a pop act. The release of Veckatimist sets Grizzly Bear easily apart from other indie pop groups as an elite and shows that the musicianship from Yellow House has taken a huge step in accessibility. Less of an acoustic art folk sound, the album not only makes them the reigning experts in harmony, but establishes them as masters of allowing complex song compositions to sound necessary, simplistic, and pleasing. Veckatimist is surely an album to check out immediately if you haven’t – it’s amazing.

Rating: 9/10

Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca – released June 9, 2009 on Domino Records

After their last brave reinterpretation of Black Flag, these guys and gals are back with their completely original Bitte Orca. Maybe not as risqué as Rise Above (an experimental “cover” album of Black Flag’s Damaged after not hearing it for 15 years), this full length still manages to challenge the musically minded, yet remain entirely accessible, which might be considered an even greater leap of faith for them. But led by composer Dave Longstreth and supported by an ever-changing cast of talent, the collective known as Dirty Projectors are showing that it’s worth the effort to find that equilibrium. The album starts off powerfully with what is perhaps Longstreth’s perspective on humanity’s animalistic qualities in “Cannibal Resource”. Upon first listen, the track sounds like a roller coaster of a very diverse set of samples that pop in just at the right times. It makes for a carefully constructed critique questioning whether human evolution really subtracts our violent instincts as nature’s creatures. The first single, “Stillness is the Move”, is evidently one of the more electronically influenced five minutes of Bitte Orca. With more focus on the vocals, which the gals in the group sing, the heavy beat and repeating keyboard sample play nice complementary roles in this rhythmic track dealing with existential love. It ends by blending into a dramatic violin piece that abruptly transitions to the romantically relaxed “Two Doves”. But as lovey-dovey as the guitar picking and violin might suggest a perfect springtime relationship, lyrical content tells the story of a couple that seem content only when perceived externally, but riddled with hidden conflict. Thus, form and content appropriately mesh when you hear lines like “Your two eyes are like two doves / But our bed is like a failure” sung so beautifully over contradictory instrumentals. Longstreth, apart from composing and producing, shows off his singing chops throughout Bitte Orca and it’s no different in the vocally harmonic “No Intention” as he wails his voice in the chorus. Dirty Projectors were already perceived as a thoughtful, complicated collective of musicians before Bitte Orca, but with this full length, they have achieved a balance between creating an original sound and a relatable sensibility for audiences. Thus, it isn’t too difficult to establish the album as their best to date and if you don’t give it a good thorough listen, you’re missing out on what is sure to be one of the contenders for this year’s best.

Rating: 9/10

Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – released May 26, 2009 on V2 Records

Maybe used as irony, Phoenix has named their new full length, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, because upon initial hearing, it seems they aren’t trying to achieve anything grandiose, but rather just make you dance or sing in the shower. The record’s first track, “Lisztomania”, is titled as such to reference the maniac behavior pianist Frank Liszt’s super-fans would often exhibit. Upbeat drum kit strikes, constant guitar riffs, and cool vocals easily call for some serious feet shuffling. This tone is pretty much set in stone for the rest of the album from here on out. “1901”, the second single, relies on some heavy synth to make it a sure hit on the indie dance floors. The French quartet is holding up their home’s preconceived sense of dance music well while still keeping their signature ambience. In fact, the almost completely instrumental seven-minute track, “Love Like a Sunset”, offers an early spacey intermission for what one could consider redundancy in the LP. But then tone instantly revs back up again, though not completely. The latter half of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is certainly still appropriate for some indistinguishable movement; however, the band reverts to some easygoing rock that’s more ideal for home listening. These include “Rome” and “Countdown (Sick for the Big Sun)”. Phoenix is still doing what they do best with Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix and has obviously pursued to be a little catchier, appealing to the club youngster. The poppy tracks make for a fun listen, but the album in its entirety lacks diversity, which results in a definite sameness that will cause listening fatigue. So with the joy in its immediacy, just keep in mind that it may be transient.

Rating: 7/10

Mos Def – The Ecstatic – released June 9, 2009 on Downtown Records

With mainstream rappers drifting further and further from actual rapping (West’s excessive autotune use and Lil’ Weezy’s attempt to strap on a guitar and rock out), it’s refreshing to hear a well-written rhyme over a well-produced beat. That directness is what Mos Def’s The Ecstatic delivers and purist rap fans won’t be disappointed with the result. But with this simplicity, it’s not to say the full length is boring. With attention-grabbing audio samples inserted as intros to tracks, The Ecstatic offers Mos’s signature flair in his wit-fueled raps. The Neptunes-produced “Twilite Speedball” is an interesting mainstream-to-underground collaboration that has its expected deep horns and shrieks Pharell and company is infamous for these days. “Life in Marvelous Times” is the most bass intensive track making for a conventionally rough gangster rap tune about his hometown streets. Hailing from Brooklyn, Mos describes the conditions of growing up in an asphalt jungle for what it is, showing more nostalgia than anything. He then moves on to current issues with “Workers Comp.” standing up for the common workingman in today’s tough economic climate. It’s this kind of relevancy in indie hip-hop that makes an artist like Mos much more important compared to most of the radio rappers cranking out nonsensical club bangers. “History” teams Mos Def aka Mr. Smith back Talib Kweli, alluding to their duo days as Black Star while documenting a personal story of the struggles and triumphs of the past in two and half minutes. The Ecstatic is a straightforward underground rap album that is as entertaining to listen to, as it is culturally relevant. In that spirit, Mos Def has recently decided to also release the album as a t-shirt, with the cover as the graphic on the front and the track list on the back. The tag will have a download code on it for buyers to obtain the album digitally, a new concept of distribution for any artist. If you’re sick of the same Flo Rida playing on the radio, this 16 song album will enlighten you in some way – or at least put clothes on your back.

Rating: 8/10