Like BCE and CE, there are two distinct timelines for discussing Animal Collective. For the sake of shorthand, I will herein refer to these periods as the BF epoch (before Feels) and the AF (after Feels), with Feels being the Christ period. While the AF epoch emphasized vocal harmonies and booty bass (not to mention zealous internet hype, which was not necessarily undeserved), BF was brilliant, disjointed freak folk. If you miss that sound, Niao might help you out with their latest bucolic experimental jaunt Clenched Fist.
I had a feeling I would really enjoy this EP, considering the cover featured a sweet UFO and the press release was pointed, straightforward, and devoid of hyperbolic hype. It literally read “pentatonic blues runs on the keyboard, hypnotic rhythms and melodies accompanied by toms… no words, only drones and simple syllables like ‘ey ah oo wah’.” Well, alright, count me in.
The trio does indeed deliver the goods – sparse arrangements, thick tribal dissonance, and a sinister vibe. These are campfire songs for the possibly possessed. Great stuff. Czech out Sailing Records for more info and to grip Clenched Fist.
For fans of: Blues Control, early Animal Collective, Black Dice
MP3 :::
Niao – Untitled Six
