Animal Collective is a Baltimore, Maryland-based experimental pop band. Avey Tare (David Portner), Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), Geologist (Brian Weitz), and Deakin are among its members (Josh Dibb). The band’s music is distinguished by an eclectic exploration of forms such as psychedelia, freak folk, noise, and electronica, including features such as loops, drones, sampling, vocal harmonies, and sound collage. According to AllMusic’s Fred Thomas, the band “shaped the face of independent experimental rock during the 2000s and 2010s.”
From an early age, the band members met in school and began recording together in various types of collaboration. They founded the record label Paw Tracks in 1999, releasing what is generally regarded as their debut album, Spirit They’re Gone, Spirit They’ve Vanished (2000), as well as material by other artists. Strawberry Jam, the band’s first album to chart on the Billboard 200, was released in 2007. Merriweather Post Pavilion, released in 2009, was the band’s most commercially successful album, peaking at #13 on the US chart. Its reverb-heavy psychedelic pop sound influenced independent music for the next decade.
Animal Collective records may include contributions from any or all of the group’s members. The collaboration was not officially established until all four musicians joined together for the album Here Comes the Indian, which evolved from early collaborations between Lennox and Portner (2003). The majority of previous collaborations amongst band members were therefore retroactively classed as part of Animal Collective’s discography. Dibb’s time off does not constitute full leave because he frequently takes pauses from recording and playing with the band.