Eight years after he redefined a genre withPerson Pitch, Panda Bear has releasedPanda Bear Meets The Grim Reaper, an album that shows that in eight years the Animal Collective man’s approach to his solo material hasn’t changed that much at all.
At least, not in the melody department. Panda Bear is back to embracing samplers and electronic elements, and the sounds he produces on this album put his new tricks on display. Check the gurgling beat behind ‘Come To Your Senses’, or the mystique of ‘Butcher Baker Candlestick Maker’. But on every track bar one, he employs the same vocal techniques he always has (double tracked with lots of reverb) leaving one wishing it were an instrumental album instead. The exception is ‘Tropic Of Cancer’, an exquisite ballad set to a plaintive harp sample that sees Panda adapt his voice into a sort of croon.
Given the album’s title, one would be forgiven for thinking this album would feature darker material. Instead, it’s another set of standard Panda Bear songs. Which is OK; he is a fine pop craftsman and fans will find something to love. But from a member of one of the most unpredictable bands of the modern era, the whole thing seems like a let down.
3/5.
