Drag City have announced the first album by Animal Collective’s Brian “Geologist” Weitz; a collaboration with Sleepy Doug Shaw (Gang Gang Dance / White Magic / High Life). Doug has posted a number of personal performances on his Instagram – ranging from from songs to folk guitar pieces:
For this new album, Brian took a selection of these vignettes, worked his magic on them and, through loops and edits, created this unpremeditated collaboration. On a personal level, it feels quite special – a beautiful gift to Doug marking their decades-long friendship. The first single, Route 9 Falls (video below), is quite something – sounding less like a guitar and more like an experimental hammered dulcimer in the hands of Michael O’Shea. It’s a remarkable recomposition that retains an organic feel but on an intense majestic scale that grows and expands beyond the room walls from which these sounds were first created, like some cosmic Appalachian odyssey.
“I didn’t set out to make a Geologist record, or even a record anyone but Doug would hear,” Brian reflects. “I didn’t add any new sounds beyond what existed, and just fed the raw materials through myself as a possible channel. That way, I could say, ‘Happy birthday. You made a record, you just didn’t know it.’”
“Route 9 Falls”, is out now with a music video by Danny Perez. Mirroring the process used by Brian, Danny’s music video takes clips of Doug’s playing — the same footage that moved Brian to strike up A Shaw Deal.
A Shaw Deal with Geologist & D.S. is out on January 31st via Drag City.
Pre-Order on Bandcamp | Drag City