Animal Collective – “Merriweather Post Pavilion”

8/10

Four or five years ago, Animal Collective was being hailed as progenitors of the recently emerged freak folk movement, a group of like-minded musicians equipped with traditional acoustic instruments and heavily influenced by some of the more left-field folky types of the 1960s.

Despite being a term created by journalists, freak folk is nevertheless an appropriate description of Animal Collective’s mid-period albums like 2004’s “Sung Tongs” and 2005’s “Feels” with their chime-y acoustic guitars, sing-screamed, generally indiscernible lyrics and bizarre background noises generally contributing to a creepy campfire mood.

However, beginning with member Panda Bear’s solo album “Person Pitch” and continuing with the group’s fantastic 2007 effort “Strawberry Jam,” Animal Collective began to ditch whatever instruments they used to create music and experiment more with advanced music-making technology.

“Merriweather Post Pavilion,” with its burbling synths and trance-inducing loops, represents the apex of this shift toward the electronic. Long-term fans will either hail it as a magnum opus or reject it as a betrayal. It’s really just another AC record, albeit created with different tools. The usual formula is in place where bouncy, off-kilter pop songs are interspersed with the longer, druggier pieces I’ve always had less patience for.

The anti-materialist, pro-rudimentary shelter anthem “My Girls” features a sparkly, descending synth figure, bouncy rhythms and sing-songy vocals; it is guaranteed to have you hopping around your living room like a goofball. The nearly-as-good “Summertime Clothes” is another standout, with its surreal summertime imagery lyrics, utilizes similar musical elements to achieve a similar, joy-inducing effect. By now, these guys have perfected the art of the quirky pop song designed to flood your brain with serotonin even if singer Avey Tare sometimes sounds like the dude from that lame 1980s group UB40.

The rest of “MPP” can’t match these early heights yet remains consistently enjoyable and imaginative throughout. The strongest gripe is with the headache-inducing “Daily Routine” which rides a ridiculous organ loop that one friend described as “crystals screaming at each other” for way too long. Minor qualms aside, listening to “MPP” is a refreshing and illuminating experience.

Despite what some may claim, Animal Collective haven’t created a new musical language with this album, but have managed to inject another dose of unique and affecting music into a scene that desperately needs it, and that’s definitely not a bad thing.