Experimental pop band Animal Collective just announced their new LP Time Skiffs, which is set for release on Feb. 4, 2022, via Domino. In anticipation of the album, the band released the first single, “Prester John.”

According to a press release, the hypnotic song was created by combining two songs, one written by Avey Tare and one written by Panda Bear. And while the lyrics capture a feeling of being content with mortality, the music video adds a psychedelic effect. The six-minute trip explores whimsical colors and natural landscapes: the vibrant waves are evocative of the cover art from Future’s Dirty Sprite, the fast-paced moving lights are reminiscent of the boat ride from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the group occasionally plays in a forest and sometimes appears underwater. 

As described in the press release, the nine songs of the album are “love letters, distress signals, en plein air observations, and relaxation hymns, the collected transmissions of four people who have grown into relationships and parenthood and adult worry.”

Although Time Skiffs is the group’s first studio album in over five years, they’ve still been releasing music this year. In February, primarily, they provided the soundtrack for Marnie Ellen Hertzler’s Crestone, a documentary about a group of Soundcloud rappers. 

Animal Collective also released dates for a U.S. tour throughout March, including a show at the Big Ears Festival in Knoxville, TN. This latest track suggests that the band will provide an intricate and innovative album in February, and equally exciting shows in the months to follow. 

Time Skiffs tracklisting:
1. Dragon Slayer
2. Car Keys
3. Prester John
4. Strung with Everything
5. Walker
6. Cherokee
7. Passer-by
8. We Go Back
9. Royal and Desire

Animal Collective Tour Dates
03-08 Richmond, VA – The National
03-09 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
03-11 North Adams, MA – Mass MOCA – Hunter Center
03-12 Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel
03-13 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
03-15 Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
03-16 Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
03-18 Pittsburgh, PA – Mr. Smalls Theatre
03-19 Detroit, MI – Majestic Theatre
03-20 Chicago, IL – Vic Theatre
03-21 Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
03-23 Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall
03-24 Nashville, TN – Marathon Music Works
03/25 Knoxville, TN – Big Ears Festival
03-26 Atlanta, GA – The Eastern

Photo Credit: Stephen Hoffmeister