Animal Collective wants to do their own thing and that means saving coral reefs
IF THERE’S one thing that has been consistent about the ever-mercurial Animal Collective, it’s that they will almost assuredly zig when you expect them to zag.
They are an amorphous musical entity that seems allergic to any casual adoration from fans and critics. Rather than regurgitating the same sounds and thoughts every album and touring cycle, they have given themselves the runway to evolve from four guys who used to take the stage in animal masks obscuring their faces to having the freedom to be themselves.
Brian Weitz, who mans the synthesizer sounds in the band under the moniker Geologist, was one of the main champions of “Tangerine Reef.” Weitz and Josh Dibb – known as Deakin, the multi-instrumentalist of the band – are avid scuba divers and have planned annual vacations centered on diving for about two decades. Because of their interaction with marine life through their dives, Weitz and Dibb have long had an affinity for coral reefs and the su r rea l images that can be found deep in our oceans. The band knows that they have an
I think everybody is aware of the direction the environment is headed over the last few decades -
Brian Weitz, band member
opportunity to turn their sparetime passion for diving into a message for the uninitiated. “I think everybody is aware of the direction the environment is headed over the last few decades – and the ocean has been hit particularly hard for a lot of reasons,” Weitz says. “We thought this project could help highlight that.”
Before committing himself full time to Animal Collective, Weitz had one toe dipped in the water of the D.C. political world, working for a Senate subcommittee on oceans, fisheries and the Coast Guard.
He has a bachelor’s degree in environmental science and a master’s in public administration in environmental science and policy from Columbia University. “Tangerine Reef” merges the branches in the road where his career could have gone.
The genesis of the project came about in 2017 as a one- off art exhibition called “Coral Orgy,” which took place at the Frank Gehry- designed New World Center in Miami. The event was billed as “a site- specific performance celebrating the cosmic synchronicity of sex on the reef.”
This theme becomes evident when viewing the album because the imagery of coral is rife with mouth-like orifices enchantingly swaying and gesticulating.
That imagery was provided by art collaborative Coral Morphologic, an art- science duo formed by marine biologist Colin Foord and musician J.D. McKay, who filmed all the visuals of the album. The pair were longtime Animal Collective fans and approached the band about a collaboration.