The solo endeavors of pioneering electro-pop troupe Animal Collective track a constellation of experimentation, each of the four members psychedelicizing their own ambient rock. Friday, two of the spearheading cooperative’s stars aligned at Mohawk. Noah Lennox (Panda Bear) preceded by Brian Weitz (Geologist) sold-out the Levitation showcase.
Local Parisian synth songstress Lou Rebecca opened, grounded in Josh Mills’ deft production. Accented by balletic striding and sliding, Austin’s Holodeck Records artist cinematically unearthed a wealth of fresh French language tracks. The theatrical first act bid adieu with surprise gymnastic splits and a pronounced bow. Merci beaucoup.
Donning his trademark headlamp, Geologist launched into a super heady 40 minutes of unceasing slink, slither, and propulsive sound. Discernibly surreal as a faceless head and torso below a floating beam, Weitz worked his way from lulling naturalism into a turbulent frenzy, and then back again, weaving Middle Eastern scales into a headlong soundscape.
Easing into a 75-minute headline set, Panda Bear hit his stride on second track “Boys Latin,” a fan front-runner off 2015’s Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper.
Looping imagery of lips, fruit, and flowers drenched Lennox’s lone figure in technicolor as he worked overtime at the track’s speedy choral echo. The Lisbon-based expat’s bright electronic compositions enveloped and lifted the music’s central component – his powerfully prismatic pipes. Throughout the set, the singer’s sensitive, shifting vox consistently elicited cheers at its most tremendous moments.
As the soloist churned through danceable selections and sharp, queasier takes, the sonics never ceased. Wind swooshes, cricket chirps, and choppy, rapid-fire industrial interludes morphed between songs. The sprightly momentum carried right up until an encore of double Grim Reaper selections “Tropic of Cancer” and “Selfish Gene.”
The performance pulled prominently from Lennox’s most recent, vinyl-only EP A Day With the Homies. In announcing the January release, the talent explained, “The strokes of the messages themselves are broad enough, then, that I think anybody can find a familiar face – if they care to look.”
Responding to Panda Bear’s message, Levitation made the recognition.
This article appears in April 27 • 2018.