Singles mean something different to Animal Collective. As Nick Murray explained in his review of the band’s Essential-stamped new album, Centipede Hz, forthcoming single “Applesauce,” due out on 10-inch vinyl November 13, “traces a piece of fruit’s journey from farmer to child to chef to mayor, thankfully abandoning the trail upon its digestion. Like nearly all of the record’s 11 songs, it benefits from a disregard for traditional pop verse/chorus/bridge song structures.”
That’s our AnCo, alright, channeling an encyclopedia’s worth of deeply dug influences into one giant web of gloriously crossed wires and strange inclinations. Now, thanks to Domino Records, we can hear the unreleased B-side to “Applesauce,” a live favorite called “Crimson” that combines warped tropical percussion with yearning vocals and echoing effects. Also, in keeping with the theme, it looks rather tasty. While Animal Collective have been off the road for about a month, they appeared on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on October 5 to perform “Rosie Oh,” and were just added to Miami Beach’s UR1 Music Festival in early December.
While you’re getting caught up, be sure to read Christopher R. Weingarten’s piece on how AnCo and their arty Brooklyn bretheren have helped gentrify the zeitgeist.
