On the tails of their coherent 2009 masterpiece Merriweather Post Pavilion, Animal Collective continues down their merry path of unbridled, joyful psych. Less abrasive than previous efforts, Fall Be Kind begins with a gentle swaying aural landscape created with teasing sounds and angelic lines like “Let Light In” before morphing into a silly, flute-heavy Putumayo-like folk tune. Their cheekiness continues with “What Would I Want? Sky,” a densely remixed sample of Grateful Dead’s “Unbroken Chain” surrounded with majestic swirls and bleeps and rousing lyrics. “On a Highway” sheds some of the instrumental layers focusing on the lyrics instead, while the final cut on the EP “I Think I Can” is both strange and wonderful—thumping around with primal percussion work, Beach Boys choruses and celestial strings. (Domino, www.myanimalhome.net) Kent Davies
Winnipeg music & culture since 1989