Fall Be Kind: New Animal Collective EP Coming This Month

Remember when Animal Collective said they weren’t going to be releasing an EP of b-sides (like they’ve done for the past few albums) from Merriweather Post Pavillion? Well, thank god they’re liars. Before the year ends they’ll be putting out a 5-song b-sides EP called Fall Be Kind. The digital release comes out Nov. 23 and a physical version will be out on Dec. 14.

Yeah, that’s the album art. And here’s some words from Avey Tare about how it contrasts with the spring/summer vibe of MPP:

Pitchfork: You said this EP’s got more of an autumn feel to it. How would you say it’s different from the Merriweather stuff?

Dave Portner (Avey): The vibe is a little bit darker, I’d say– not in terms of the sound, maybe. Well, the melodies are definitely darker. It’s not abrasive dark or anything, but I think the mood of it has just a little bit more of a nighttime, kind of dark, sad vibe, even though I think “What Would I Want? Sky” is a little bit more positive or upbeat. That’s the only one. And then “I Think I Can” is very rhythmic, too. A lot of it’s not so rhythmic, or at least not as much as Merriweather is. It’s a little bit more washy and kind of orchestral.

You’ll wanna check out the full interview here as it’s chocked full of info on their upcoming releases and many more juicy bits (including their movie!).

All four tracks have made their rounds live, but the second one has got me the most excited to here a studio version of. It’s called “What Would I Want Sky” and the titular sample is legally licensed from the Grateful Dead song “Unbroken Chain.” And Phil Lesh actually loves the song! Here’s a version of “WWIWS” from AC’s Jan. 25, 2009 session at BBC’s Freak Zone:

You can download the audio here.

The first track will be “Graze” which has been performed live for years as “Grace” (or at least people thought it was spelled that way). Here’s the version Ali and I heard this summer:

The final tracks are called “Bleed,” “On A Highway,” and “I Think I Can.” The two former have been performed lived and of the two latter Avey said the band felt neither would fit on MPP. Hopefully that’s a good thing. I’m sure we’ll all be eagerly awaiting the upcoming release of Fall Be Kind, unless you’re this douche.