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Noah Lennox’s favourite track on Daft Punk’s last album wasn’t the one on which he sang. Instead Lennox - who splits his time performing as one quarter of Animal Collective and recording solo under the alias Panda Bear - liked a very different song: Paul Williams duet with the French robots, ‘Touch’.
An emotionally raw, pulsating synthetic symphony, with moments both funky and wonky, it grooves and pulsates, evolving seemingly at will. Lennox wanted to make a whole album that sounded something like that. He has succeeded with his new album, Panda Bear Meets The Grim Reaper.
His fifth solo release, this album was initially started during sessions for Animal Collective’s 2013 Centipede Hz LP. Never afraid to consider the big issues (Lennox’s Young Prayer LP dealt with the death of his father and he discussed coming off antidepressants on ‘Take Pills’), Panda Bear is equally at home with a killer groove (exemplified by the joyous 'Bros' on Person Pitch). But appropriately given its morbid title, ...Meets the Grim Reaper is darker. This is freeform electronica designed to move you, not make you move.
There are many moments to savour: ‘Crosswords’ has an uplifting message like a robotic pep talk - anyone who enjoyed Caribou’s last LP will love this. ‘Butcher Baker Candlestick Maker’ welds slackers-on-sedatives lyrics with some deeply curious digital backing. ‘Boys Latin’ is as trippy as the music video that accompanies it, with the choral harmonies and longing lyrics give it more than a hint of melancholy.
At times Lennox clearly just relishes making some otherworldly sounds. ‘Mr Noah’ begins with an effect that recalls a generator starting, then a small animal reacting to storm, followed by Jeff Goldblum becoming The Fly. Similarly ‘Davy Jones Locker’ is a 35 second snippet that would ideally soundtrack a Sci-Fi scanning device while 'Come To Your Senses' opens with what could be only be described as an almighty tape recorder catastrophy.
At times it all gets a bit much. If you want to recreate a first listen of ‘Sequential Circuits’ load up three separate Youtube videos of obscure library music and play them at the same time. There is layer upon layer of vocal and melody on every track, growing more psychedlic by the moment - at times resembling the more outre moments of MGMT, at one might expect given the influence of producer Peter Kember.
But these are distractions. Underneath all the digital oddness and psych flourishes, there are instances of pure wonder. 'Tropic Of Cancer', an attempt by Lennox to forgive the illness that killed his father, has a delicate harp centre that feels both folorn and true. 'Lonely Wanderer' is similarly affecting, resulting in what could be an emotional John Grant performance being divebombed by a drone. 'Selfish Gene' is true oddball disco pop - think of Brian Wilson setting up his Smile sandpit in a nightclub.
At times Panda Bear Meets The Grim Reaper is an extremely confusing record. But those moments of bewilderment are outweighed by those that are really capitivating. Sure it's not an easy listen - but then given it's subject mattter (and the fact it may be Lennox's last under his current alias) maybe it doesn't need to be. As a sonic palate cleanser for the year ahead however, you won’t hear anything better.
Panda Bear Meet The Grim Reaper (Domino) is out 12 January.
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