Two out of four members of the psychedelic-folk band Animal Collective performed a DJ set on Oct. 10 at the Constellation Room inside The Observatory venue in Santa Ana.
Animal Collective has been one of the most successful indie-rock bands of the last decade and have released nine studio albums to show for it. Their mixture of psychedelic, folk, and ambient music have created a unique “trippy” sound that has evolved into their own personal signature sound.
Deakin (Josh Dibb) and Geologist (Brian Weitz) are the somewhat unpopular members of the Baltimore, Maryland based band.
Nonetheless, a huge turnout of “hip” teenagers and adults were on hand to witness the duo perform an intimate DJ set in the small, tightly packed room of the Constellation Room.
The band occasionally has DJ sets as a way for the members to have fun and take a break from their full live shows.
Without their other two highly popular members Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) and Avey Tare (David Portner), the duo of Deakin and Geologist played a variety of different music for about over two hours [they went on around 11 p.m. and ended at 2 a.m.].
The show began at 10:30 p.m. with opening DJ’s, The Blackouts.
The Blackouts consist of photographer Atiba Jefferson, and his brother Ako. The Jefferson brothers are famous in the L.A. entertainment scene as Atiba photographs many skateboarders and athletes, while Ako is the art director for The Skateboard Magazine.
Their set consisted of 80’s hits such as “Boys Don’t Cry” by The Cure and “This Charming Man” by the Smiths, electronic and disco fused tracks, and some notable tracks by well-known producers such as the late DJ Rashad.
While much of the crowd seemed oblivious as to whom the brothers were, they continued to socialize, dance, and await the start of the Animal Collective DJ set very eagerly as nobody knew what to expect from the headliners.
Geologist and Deakin soon took the stage afterwards and played a set that featured electronic dance music, experimental hip-hop sounds, “trap”, and indie-rock musicians such as Explosions in the Sky and John Maus.
The duo kept the tracks going all night while the crowd danced, drank beer from the bar, mingled, and enjoyed the atmosphere in the tiny packed room.
Many die hard Animal Collective fans were hoping to hear some of the bands tracks, only to be disappointed and let down.
The highlight of the night, however was definitely hearing the duo play mainstream “trap” songs such as ILoveMakonnen’s hit single, “Tuesday”, and Schoolboy Q’s “Studio”.
Yet despite the DJ set being random and quite odd, Geologist and Deakin definitely put on a good set as the vibes were on point and the crowd never stopped dancing.
Animal Collective last played in Los Angeles as a full band last year on Oct. 21 at The Wiltern in Hollywood. Since then, Panda Bear has performed solo in L.A., Avey Tare has performed with his other band, Avey Tare’s Slasher Flicks in L.A. [and has had solo DJ sets], and Deakin and Geologist have been around the U.S. performing DJ sets together.
Recently, it was announced that they would be performing DJ sets in both Santa Ana and L.A. [with Portner joining them at the L.A. show].
To find out more about upcoming Animal Collective events, give them a like on their Facebook page or follow their Instagram account.
Live footage of Animal Collective courtesy of Pitchfork Media via Youtube