Animal Eyes, Where We Go (Self-Released)

By Mark Stock

[VISION QUEST] When it comes to Animal Eyes, feel free to judge the album by its cover. That's especially true of Where We Go, which depicts an animated land mass floating seemingly in orbit, just waiting to be explored. The band has grown significantly since it moved to Portland from Alaska five years ago, and Where We Go is the quintet's most complete record to date, with clean production that manages to set free—not stifle—the inherent wildness of the band. In a city with a healthy psych- and prog-rock presence, this effort is right at home filed next to the likes of Bearcubbin', Mothertapes and Boone Howard. "Zeke Wizard" bridges distant planes with raucous lifts chased by soft keyboards, while the heavy and heaving "Una" functions as a colossal head rush. The Animal Collective comparisons start to make sense with this release, at least in terms of the underlying bounciness throughout, but it's a distinctly West Coast interpretation: less strung-out and busy, much more relaxed and casually exploratory.

SEE IT: Animal Eyes plays Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave., with Fauna Shade and Sama Dams, on Thursday, May 12. 9 pm. $5. 21+.

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