Panda Bear - Buoys (February 8, 2019)

i sorta like the sound of Dolphin but it doesn't really go anywhere at all - this was a big problem with Meets The Grim Reaper too. i don't really have much in the way of expectations for anything AC-related these days though

Person Pitch is top 10 of the 00’s for me and I’ve been waiting for him to do something as good as that one ever since. Dolphin doesn’t do much as a song but sound-wise it makes me optimistic for the route he’s taking on this one. Crossing my fingers it’s a proof of concept/intro in the same fashion as Comfy in Nautica and it makes more sense in the context of the full album.

I agree that Dolphin sounds slight on its own, no idea why it was the first single. I thought it was a foregone conclusion that the title track would be the first released, it's easily the catchiest and most immediate of the new songs I saw him play. Here's a great video from last spring with "Buoys" and "Part of the Math," a killer song from A Day with the Homies.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GGimxSvmoE

This is when I feel like PB's publicist: it is absolutely ridiculous that A Day with the Homies is still vinyl only, despite being the best thing he's made since Person Pitch. If it isn't issued digitally, it'll rank just below Avey Tare & Kria Brekkan reversing their solo record at the last minute for no reason in terms of fuckups by the AC. that record has some of AT's best songs, and hardly anyone knows it, because the only way you can hear the songs in their correct form is bootlegs & youtube videos.

Why is he against a digital release? Music for the masses maaan

inspired by vinyl only dance/electronic stuff he was into I think

full press release from last year:

It’s been my perception that these things tend to homogenize experience so I hope you’ll forgive me if I don’t outline, in any specific way, the many choices involved in its creation. I appreciate your role as filter or translator, and by withholding my own blueprints for the album, I mean to encourage and cultivate your part in its trip.

The songs aren’t lyrically linear or narrative as such, though I did scatter pieces of longer-chewed themes across the tracks. I find they still work satisfactorily alone, but strengthen each other’s messages when combined.

I hoped to make something without frills or much embellishment, principally because I’ve found more fluff tends to equal less power. Since the juiciest action is entirely focused in the deeper zones of the frequency spectrum (at least from where I’ve sat), power was key.

It’s not often anymore I find something specific to my life that feels worthwhile setting to song for others to consume. It’s a tough sell convincing myself that my own troubles warrant as much attention as those we all share. The strokes of the messages themselves are broad enough, then, that I think anybody can find a familiar face, if they care to look.

The lion’s share of the noise is centered, or nearly, so both speakers get a taste. This is another nod towards power, but it also means HOMIES doesn’t work in the same way through headphones as it does out in the air.

My greatest hope with this stuff is for it to live like my favorite songs do, which is to say like comforts or companions. Thank you very much for listening and I hope A Day With the Homies can mean something to you.

There was a reason for reversing the record (as a tribute to David Lynch) but it’s still a very moronic decision and nowhere as smart as they thought it was.

At any rate there is definitely a point with the AC members in which drug fueled decisions are a hindrance and not a creative boost, but I guess the insanity is a necessary part of the package with this band. Sometimes it hits, sometimes it misses.

Drug fueled?

hash & INLAND EMPIRE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjT8VNwSf8M

is flappy bird ok? new panda video released 2 days ago and he hasn't posted it yet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3pvD2eeews

I have like 3 colds and my hands are covered in gauze... it’s a good song, melody reminds me of XTC

I'm not the biggest fan of Panda Bear solo, but I really love both singles so far.

oh I really like Dolphin. Wouldn't have known it was PB if I hadn't been told

This is out to almost no fanfare. Really spare and mostly based around acoustic guitar... in a way vaguely calls back to Young Prayer more than recent albums.

Listened once last night on headphones and pretty ambivalent about it. Great production but the songs are not that strong, a few excepted. The autotune gets really old really fast, maybe because of how he’s using it, but these songs repeat vocal melodies, rhythms. Like how many of them go like this “DUH duh... DUH duh... DUH duh da da DUH duh”

I like the beats and stuff on Grim Reaper so much. New one is...lacking in this area

certainly lacking beats, but i like how open and airy it feels, so much of his music starts to feel claustrophobic to me. i like the melody of the title track best so far, but that was the one that i remembered best from a live show.

yeah me too, the title track was the only one I remembered from last spring. I like Token, Buoys, Home Free a lot. I like the record, and have only heard it thru headphones. Will blast later today. oh I liked the one song on side 2 with the exaggerated acoustic string slides

It’s his Nebraska I guess

Thinking about seeing him (mostly for the openers who are Black Dice minus Eric)... does he play any deep cuts or just promoting this record?

saw him last spring and he only played one song from tomboy (last night on the jetty) and one from reaper (tropic of cancer). nothing from person pitch.

Probably saving that for the inevitable person pitch tour.

Thinking about seeing him (mostly for the openers who are Black Dice minus Eric)... does he play any deep cuts or just promoting this record?

Read elsewhere that the physicals recommend using supremo sound equipment for this album to be properly enjoyed. Naturally this was dissed as presumptuous and undeserved for the, I think it was Stereogum's writer's qualifications.... all aside, genuinely, headphones make the fucking difference. It's a very rich album that a lot of clear and enjoyable spaces between sounds. Reminds me or Nicolas Jaar's first album. It feels like laying your head down.

The songs aren't very strong but the details are nice enough. I warranted it a couple listens.

Looks like he's playing a brand new song and Comfy in Nautica: https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/panda-bear/2019/930-club-washington-dc-b9501f2.html

Part of the Math
I Know I Don't Know
Dolphin
Playing the Long Game (song debut)
Nod to the Folks
Master
Token
Crosswords
Shepard Tone
Inner Monologue
Flight
---
Comfy in Nautica
Sunset

xp I agree that Buoys sounds a lot better with headphones than thru speakers, in that way it's the opposite of Homies.

Surprised p4k was so kind to this tbh, a 7.6 and a review by Mark Richardson (I didn't know he was still writing for them).

Was sort of meh on first listen but now I find myself liking it less and less. I've probably listened to it four times now and decided to just put it away. Might return to it again in a few months with fresh ears.

that's exactly my experience, I'm already sick of the half of the album I actually liked at first. "Master" is the one that doesn't bug me yet but maybe just because the chorus is stuck in my head. so much subpar material. and that pitched down vocal part in "Inner Monologue" is awful.

Yikes, he was terrible. The opener (Flaccid Mojo: Aaron & Bjorn from Black Dice) was excellent so it wasn't a total waste.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7br8RR-iv4

I still remember the time Panda Bear was actually good.

hahahahah

Peyton Warren21 hours ago

Lmao panda really out here trying to impress his kids’ friends