Merriweather Post Pavilion
by Animal Collective
  • Record Label: Domino
  • Release Date: Jan 20, 2009
User Score
8.5

Universal acclaim- based on 627 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 537 out of 627
  2. Mixed: 35 out of 627
  3. Negative: 55 out of 627

Review this album

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. TomT.
    Jan 25, 2009
    6
    Things like "streamlined" and "accessible" dont mean its better than previous albums. if anything it means its more disposable and doesnt hold up after severals listens.
  2. DK
    Feb 10, 2009
    6
    It isn't terrible, and it is certainly interesting in parts, but I can't fathom people calling this a classic. Strawberry Jam and Feels, those were very good albums - probably in the 8 out of 10 range - but this just feels like a step back, a retread homage to Pet Sounds era Beach Boys. And I have tried to love this album - listened in the morning, in the car, while exercising, It isn't terrible, and it is certainly interesting in parts, but I can't fathom people calling this a classic. Strawberry Jam and Feels, those were very good albums - probably in the 8 out of 10 range - but this just feels like a step back, a retread homage to Pet Sounds era Beach Boys. And I have tried to love this album - listened in the morning, in the car, while exercising, while meditating, lying in bed in the dark with killer headphones (which is the best way to experience it), in a bad mood, in a good mood - it just doesn't do "it" for me the way other great albums have. Having said that, the first four tracks are very strong, but it really drops off after Summertime Clothes and it doesn't really give you anything to hold on to again until the closer Brother Sport.… Expand
  3. KenM
    Mar 17, 2009
    6
    I'd like to give it points for its brazen, happy weirdness but there are a whole bunch of bands doing that right now too. Unless you are using the same mind altering substances the band uses when making these tracks, you may find listening to this as forgettable as I did. Listen to stereolab's earlier experimental work and that's better than anything we get here.
  4. ZaneS
    Mar 27, 2009
    6
    Very weird. Very weird.
  5. weave
    Mar 2, 2009
    6
    Already destined to be the most overrated album of the year. Not that it's terrible, but it just pales in comparison to Sung Tongs or Panda Bear's Person Pitch. It's one of those situations where people catch up to a great act past their prime and feel compelled to say they're great. I'm a relative Animal Collective neophyte myself, but I can see they're Already destined to be the most overrated album of the year. Not that it's terrible, but it just pales in comparison to Sung Tongs or Panda Bear's Person Pitch. It's one of those situations where people catch up to a great act past their prime and feel compelled to say they're great. I'm a relative Animal Collective neophyte myself, but I can see they're heading in the wrong direction.… Expand
  6. ShazZ.
    Mar 17, 2009
    6
    Most of the people here suggest listening to this album more than once to understand it's impact. With me, unfortunately, it happened the other way round. The first listening if this album was so overwhelming for me, I was like, "Wow!", that the subsequent ones have been disappointing. Maybe, I will begin to appreciate it more later. Still "Summertime Clothes", "My Girls" are great tracks.
  7. PeteA
    Feb 21, 2009
    5
    When it comes to inventive records you feel eager to unravel the mystery. You need many listening sessions to enjoy many of those inventive masterpieces. To be inventive you need to be first, a pioneer. This record is not first of it`s kind - it`s not even the best one of same "dreamsound". It`s easy to prefer Shins and their album Wincing the night away.
  8. nash
    Dec 15, 2009
    5
    The most overrated album of the year. Was bored after a few listens and the album is now gathering dust in the back of my collection. No doubt I will one day give it yet another listen much to my annoyance.
  9. JohnT
    Jul 6, 2009
    5
    So many people were eager to jump on the A.C train after the Pitchfork review. "Well, they gave THIS one a nine point SIX!" Legitimately, only have these songs are worth playing more than once. While the backing noise on "In the Flowers" is nice, let's review the lyrics: "Then we could be dancing No more missing you while I'm gone There we could be dancing And you'd smile So many people were eager to jump on the A.C train after the Pitchfork review. "Well, they gave THIS one a nine point SIX!" Legitimately, only have these songs are worth playing more than once. While the backing noise on "In the Flowers" is nice, let's review the lyrics: "Then we could be dancing No more missing you while I'm gone There we could be dancing And you'd smile and say, 'I like this song'" Never... NEVER did I expect something so lame to be in an Animal Collective song. My girls suffers from equally awful lyrics. Really, the only stand out tracks are "Blueish" and "Brother Sport". This is not the best album of the year... honestly I don't know what is.. it's been a terrible year for music. Even worse, saying this is one of the best albums of the decade is despicable at best.… Expand
  10. JayP
    Aug 25, 2009
    5
    Terrible... hate it.
  11. JasonP
    Aug 25, 2009
    5
    I think "eh..." about sums up my feelings for this album. I don't quite get what the big fuss is about with the album. Decent enough songs, but hardly I don't really hear anything that justifies all the 100 point reviews given by the critic. I will say that I have nothing but respect for Animal Collective. I appreaciate what they are trying to do, and for the most part I would I think "eh..." about sums up my feelings for this album. I don't quite get what the big fuss is about with the album. Decent enough songs, but hardly I don't really hear anything that justifies all the 100 point reviews given by the critic. I will say that I have nothing but respect for Animal Collective. I appreaciate what they are trying to do, and for the most part I would say they succeed, but they are hitting a double, not a home run.… Expand
  12. Esteban
    May 25, 2011
    4
    I have tried and tried again with this album and have come to the opinion that it just isn't very good. I bought this following the copious 10/10 or 5star reviews it received in the music press, but it's... dull. It only gets 4 because of the fantastic 'My Girls'. Download that track separately and save yourself the time I wasted.
  13. MattK
    Jan 31, 2009
    4
    I don't get whats so special about this album... it doesn't play well it feels awkward to listen to. It's also not as good as the No Age album released last year which was also on this new wave of weird music which I just don't see anything in but garbled music.
  14. nicka.
    Nov 9, 2009
    4
    I have listened this album through now four or five times and I just don't get why it got such great reviews. I am a big fan of inde rock and listen to bands such as Dr Dog, Radiohead, Fleet Foxes and Modust Mouse, just to name a few. To me the whole album seems disjointed and off key. It really never seems to hit much of a stride. There are a few songs that are decent but to balance I have listened this album through now four or five times and I just don't get why it got such great reviews. I am a big fan of inde rock and listen to bands such as Dr Dog, Radiohead, Fleet Foxes and Modust Mouse, just to name a few. To me the whole album seems disjointed and off key. It really never seems to hit much of a stride. There are a few songs that are decent but to balance that there are a few songs that are outright annoying. I just don't understand why people were so high on this record. I don't see it growing on me, thats for sure.… Expand
  15. Riccardinho
    Feb 3, 2010
    4
    Meh. Noisy, over-produced, boring. Music for critics, not for listening to.
  16. DylanW
    Jan 20, 2009
    5
    Doesn't sound like Animal Collective at all. If you're like me, who knows and loves Feels and Strawberry Jam, this may be jarring. I went into this album only knowing that it's supposed to be the BEST ALBUM EVER, and I came out 55 minutes later, thinking I have a different copy of the album. It took me to listen to this album to realize what I like about AC and why I like Doesn't sound like Animal Collective at all. If you're like me, who knows and loves Feels and Strawberry Jam, this may be jarring. I went into this album only knowing that it's supposed to be the BEST ALBUM EVER, and I came out 55 minutes later, thinking I have a different copy of the album. It took me to listen to this album to realize what I like about AC and why I like them. In Strawberry Jam and Feels, they use unconventional means of writing and playing music to create a mesh of noise that changes the way you think about what "music" is. Their use of dynamics, such as in Cuckoo Cuckoo is not something all can enjoy. But that's something I like about them: that it's not easy to like them. I'm not being pretentious here, I'm saying that anyone can listen to The Beatles and find it enjoyable. With a band such as AC, it'll take a few tries to like. But when you do, it will be more enjoyable than simple pop songs. With MPP, it sounds very electronic and artificial. It doesn't sound like they actually recorded any instruments for the majority of the album. This is supposedly their best work, and Panda Bear even stated that this is their best-recorded album, but to me, it sounds completely synthesized. With the exception of Guys Eyes, it doesn't sound anything like previous works of Animal Collective's. That is like most of their previous albums, but it's one thing to go from freak-folk to drum-and-bass. If you don't listen to this album as Animal Collective, you'll probably find it much more enjoyable. It's a pretty good album, but it is not Animal Collective's best work, nor is it album of the year by any means. I've been trying to like the album, but it doesn't hold up to any other AC album I have. I find the songs sound the same, with only a few stand-out tracks (Brother Sport, Summertime Clothes, Also Frightened, and Lion in a Coma).… Expand
  17. JohnS
    Jan 23, 2009
    4
    What is up with some critics today? This album is boring if you like hooks and rhythm, and don't care for uninspired Beach-Boy like singing. Seriously, it doesn't hold you attention, not unlike another very overrated group, TV On the Radio. On the plus side, AC have some fairly interesting ambient aspects which is why they earn a 4 instead of a 2 or 1.
  18. jimboj
    Jan 20, 2009
    6
    Boring. I don't get it. Am I listening to the same album as everyone else? It just sounds like a bunch of random noise to me. Where's the melody?? Is that not a requirement in good songwriting anymore? Just make a bunch of random noises, and sound like a 16-bit nintendo soundtrack, and you got yourself a classic album.

Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Best Album of 2009
2
#2 Most Discussed Album of 2009
6
#6 Most Shared Album of 2009

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
89

Universal acclaim - based on 36 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 35 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 36
  3. Negative: 0 out of 36
  1. Mojo
    80
    By far the most streamlined and purposeful Animal Collective record. [Jan 2008, p.98]
  2. Spin
    80
    In years past, Animal Collective have been cast as perpetual Peter Pans, forever stuck in childhood fantasias. But beneath the body-moving throbs and coruscating noises of Merriweather Post Pavilion, themes of domestic duty and devotion abound.
    Read full review
  3. Uncut
    100
    It feels like one of the landmark American albums of the century so far. [Jan 2008, p.86]
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »