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Animal Collective share cover of Silver Jews' "Ballad of Reverend War Character"

Animal Collective‘s Avey Tare and Geologist have released a cover of Silver Jews’ “Ballad of Reverend War Character” (from 1996’s The Natural Bridge). They also shared this note about the cover and what David Berman, who we lost earlier this month, meant to them:

A few weeks ago we planned on seeing Purple Mountains together. Instead we spent the night listening to David’s records and talking about how much his music and art meant to us. He was an inspiration for decades. One we wouldn’t be here without. We’ve been playing covers of his music since 1994 when we first picked up guitars together, so it felt like one of the few things we could do to get through the sadness. The next day we worked on this cover of “Ballad of Reverend War Character.”

Avey and Geologist unsurprisingly bring a dreamlike, psychedelic air to the song which, in its original form, is more of a dirge. Listen to that below. All proceeds from Bandcamp downloads of the cover go to MusiCares and Music Health Alliance, as requested by David’s family.