Animal Collective Merriweather Post Pavilion (2-LPs-180GV)

3.5 stars out of 5 -- "[T]he psychedelic heads of Animal Collective are evolving from raging sonic hallucinations into gentler, more melodic trips."
4 stars out of 5 -- "MERRIWEATHER plays like the summation of a long, strange trip, combining the group's career touchstones: harmonic Beach Boys pop, African tribal chants, minimalism, minimal techno, psychedelia, and dub."
Ranked #1 in Spin's "40 Best Albums Of 2009" -- "MERRIWEATHER was a seamless reinvention..."
"[A]n album full of effervescent, transportive oddity....'My Girls' floats on swirling chorus rounds an the occasional falsetto 'owooh!'..." -- Grade: A-
"[A]n experimental pop record floating in textured synthscapes, experimental noise, and earworm hooks."
5 stars out of 5 -- "It's a rare contemporary album that sounds like it couldn't have been made at any other time or by any other band....It feels like one of the landmark American albums of the century so far."
4 stars out of 5 -- "With MERRIWEATHER POST PAVILLION, Animal Collective have refined their distinctive vision, once again proving that they are ahead of the pack."
4 stars out of 5 -- "[W]ith chorally arranged voices resounding in a virtual cathedral space....A dangerous whirlpool of delights....Even on a purely technical level, this is astonishing music."
3 stars out of 5 -- "[T]his is their sunniest, most likeable record, leavened by hints of light-footed dance music: 'Summertime Clothes' is guitarless glam-rock..."
Paste (magazine) (p.52) - "['My Girls'] is a loose-limbed jumping jack of a fem-positive pop song that sounds somewhere between Eno and Byrne's MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOSTS and the Spice Girls' SPICEWORLD....'Summertime Clothes' is similarly addictive..."
Paste (magazine) - "[A]n airtight, meticulously arranged piece of synth-pop perfection whose brightness never sacrifices the band's consummate knack for effervescent, unified songwriting."
5 stars out of 5 -- "[T]hey sound more awestruck with the possibilities of life, love and music than ever before."
Clash (Magazine) (p.93) - "MERRIWEATHER POST PAVILION still has the excitement, the unique craziness and the essence of terror, but the songs are easier to listen to, softer, and their melodies shine like never before."