~Panda Bear
After reviewing Feels, the Animal Collective’s second CD for this column, a few years ago, I went out and bought, (on the strength of the cover art!), one of the first of Panda Bear’s early singles – as a present for my then teenage daughter, Kate.
She in turn, made a point of getting tickets for Panda Bear’s recent NYC concert, this past June 2007. Musically the concert was great, and included Panda Bear’s own streaming video collages, projected behind him.
The next week, I went to my favorite music store, OTHER MUSIC, and bought the new Panda Bear CD, Person Pitch. The CD is amazing – and has all the songs from the live show reproduced perfectly.
I have to admit that this CD is the most dynamic, deeply felt, and exhilarating music, with new sounds, that I have heard in some time. It puts to shame that other electronica & voice band, The Knife, and their recent third CD Silent Shout. On the other hand, The Knife’s first CD, Deep Cuts, from 3 years ago, is a great CD which added low-fi creativity and emotion to the usually boring, (except for dancing), electronica format. Their Pass It On video from the Deep Cuts CD is one of the most watched videos on YouTube, and rightly so, whereas Silent Shout is so musically and visually pretentious, as to be unlistenable.
If you want to hear great new music – where the musicians transcend their complicated electronic gadgets, get Panda Bear’s Person Pitch and The Knife’s Deep Cuts – and stay away from Silent Shout.
Panda Bear is a one man band – who also performs as one third of Animal Collective.
Artwork by: AGNES MONTGOMERY
Panda Bear, Person Pitch, C & P PAW TRACKS 2007