Animal Collective
Sung Tongs

THE REVIEW

“…And our trio will become a duo…”, that's how Pumbaa and Timon sang in “The Lion King”, and that's how two other “animals” Panda Bear and Avey Tare are singing, having been left orphaned, by choice or force, it's not known, of the third Animal Collective.
However, the two seem to manage well even without the man behind the buttons, the one behind the console, if you know what I mean. They demonstrate this amply in Sung Tongs, which was released just a few weeks ago by Fat Cat.

The album, as strange and disconnected as it may seem, speaks the basic chords of pop music (the one with a capital “P”), thus using a universally comprehensible language. However, the animalistic duo do not seem to like the straight and downhill paths. In fact, here, the fixed epithets of pop are read and rewritten in different keys, broken down and reassembled in their inverse position, de-contextualized. Often accelerated or slowed down as in the case of the pulsating “We Tiger” (just to not stray too far from the zoo).
The instrumentation is as basic in its guidelines, as varied and bizarre in the embellishment accessories of the album. A very simple acoustic guitar indeed acts as a common thread throughout the album. As for the accompaniment, instead, there's an incredible mix of ethnic instruments on one side and refined electronic embellishments (in the disjointed style of the latest Flaming Lips or that of the more rarefied Radiohead) on the other.

The ethnic element does not seem to remain confined only to the instrumentation but rises strongly to attention also thanks to certain choirs and choral parts very close to Afro tradition. This is evident in the cheerful and carefree “Who Could Win A Rabbit”. Even in “College”, there is a strong impression of being faced with a tribal ballad, the kind where you jump around the fire following the shaman. But its intro is more reminiscent of a Brian Wilson in Surfin’ Safari mode and perhaps the reference is more a tribute than unintentionality. As for references, therefore, also the Beach Boys, but how can one not think of Barrettian Psychedelia listening to certain hypnotic and repetitive vocalizations, as in the case of the prolix “Visiting Friends”.

An extremely beautiful and fascinating album that presents the noble and ancient theme of psychedelia in an extremely current and innovative way, approached with childlike simplicity. As if to say that perhaps one must regress to childhood to handle with pure simplicity the Pop fundamentals and rework them with candid, naive, and sincere genius.