Flash
The Moving Sidewalks were no mere springboard for ZZ Top; Flash is a very solid southern psych blues record in its own right.
Psychedelia
Soundtracks
Soundtracks is a humble hodgepodge of songs that aren’t as daring and bold as those on the band’s more historically important albums.
Monster Movie
Can came out of nowhere, and there really aren’t many good contemporary comparisons for them until several years into their career.
Bridge to Quiet
With low stakes and a restrained sonic palette forced on them by the quarantine life, they sound like they’re having fun again.
The Painters
It’s an inessential blip in the Animal Collective canon, but it’s in the same vein as Painting With—an enjoyable if unremarkable collection of songs.
Painting With
Putting out something that is not intentionally pushing boundaries or sensibilities feels like an innovation in itself.
Live at 9:30
Hearing them pull off some of their complex experiments in a live setting really gives the listener an appreciation for what they are creating—and oftentimes obscuring—in the studio.
Merriweather Post Pavilion
It’s only borrowing the formal elements of that earlier era and lacks the ethos of it.
Strawberry Jam
An uneven experience, but still a cohesive, pop-oriented effort that surpasses their early efforts.