Geologist – Can I Get a Pack of Camel Lights?

Geologist is the person in Animal Collective responsible for the flashes of abstract noise or obtuse tinkering, so it's perhaps not surprising that he's chosen the hurdy gurdy as his instrument of choice for his solo debut. The droning, stringed instrument is synonymous with eerie horror scores and shorthand for conjuring an atmosphere of medieval mysticism – why not use it to evoke the serene desolation of the Tucson desert?

The leftfield choice gives a timelessness to the album, whether clambering to a fever pitch of atonal merry-making (RV Envy, Compact Mirror/Last Names) or pulling out reluctant melody (Sonora, Tonic). Each song brings its own unique take on the possibilities of an instrument unfairly pegged as a one-trick pony (much like the bagpipes), mostly used as exotic flavour rather than being considered in its own versatile right.

Additional elements keep the album from being relentless gurdy; the pitched-down electronics of Not Trad, the anchoring bass of Tonic or the acoustic guitar and shakers of Government Job. Sometimes this plays out like ambient jazz, other times as avant-experimentalism. Like the smeared desert road painting on the cover, the boundaries are blurred throughout Can I Get a Pack of Camel Lights?. It's an aimless wander through the uncanny valley, ideal for close-listening dissection or complete dissociation.

Listen to: Pumpkin Festival, Sonora