It can be disorienting, especially on headphones; noises swell and overwhelm the music, and then abruptly drop out again.
Other experimental pop bands (and other Animal Collective albums) weave noise and melody together in a way that feels natural. Strawberry Jam, by comparison, uses sounds that seem totally unnecessary and detract from the songs — plus, they’re so high in the mix that they obscure almost everything other than the vocals.
Throughout Strawberry Jam, Animal Collective show the same unbridled enthusiasm they always bring to their projects, a wide-eyed wonder at what music can be. There is an exuberance to this album, like a little kid with a Fisher Price tape deck recording absolutely everything.
Unfortunately, that naivete extends from the recording approach to the songwriting — the catchiest tunes here are maddening, sing-song affairs that get stuck in your head and may never leave. Sometimes, it works: “Chores” sounds like a Paul Simon song on fast-forward before spinning out into a loose psychedelic chant; “Winter Wonder Land” is driven by a propulsive drumbeat and manages to overcome its own maddening chorus.
Fans of Collective drummer Panda Bear’s recently released Person Pitch will find a similar vibe in “#1,” which takes his Brian-Wilson-underwater sound and marries it to a keyboard arpeggio, a drum, sleighbells, and yet another heaping helping of noise. It’s a meandering piece that calls attention to how much better an album Person Pitch is.
And that’s the primary problem with Strawberry Jam — it invites unfavorable comparisons to Animal Collective’s own stronger material.
– Patrick Hajduch
Animal Collective: www.myanimalhome.net
Domino Recording Company: www.dominorecordco.com