Avey Tare
Portner performing with Animal Collective, 2009
Portner performing with Animal Collective, 2009
Background information
Birth nameDavid Michael Portner[1]
Born (1979-04-24) April 24, 1979 (age 44)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.[2]
Years active1995–present
LabelsPaw Tracks, FatCat Records, Domino Recording Company, Mistletone, Catsup Plate, St. Ives, UAAR,
Websiteaveytare.com

David Michael Portner (born April 24, 1979), also known by his moniker Avey Tare, is a musician and songwriter who co-founded the American experimental pop band Animal Collective. He has released four solo albums, as well as three collaborative albums with Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) which were later retroactively classified under Animal Collective's discography.

Animal Collective

Portner met Animal Collective's Deakin (Josh Dibb), Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), and Geologist (Brian Weitz) in high school. For years, the four of them swapped homemade recordings, shared musical ideas and performed in different group configurations. Portner recorded the Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished album with Lennox, and initially released the recording on the band's own Animal label in 1999. The album is commonly referred to as the first official Animal Collective release, with Tare writing the music and Lennox providing the 'perfect percussion' (as cited in the album's credits).[full citation needed]

After high school, Portner and Weitz moved to New York City to attend New York University and Columbia University, respectively. Lennox and Dibb eventually moved to New York City, and the band became more collaborative in nature. They finally settled on the name "Animal Collective".[citation needed]

Although the band's output is, as their name suggests, a collaborative effort, with no typical 'frontman,' Portner has been cited by the other members as being the 'primary songwriter' and de facto leader of the group. For the band's Centipede Hz, Tare confirmed that the album has eight songs penned by him.[3]

Other musical projects

Live with Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks at FYF Fest, 2014

Portner's other projects and releases include Terrestrial Tones with Eric Copeland of Black Dice, a split 12" with David Grubbs, and Pullhair Rubeye, an LP made with his then-wife Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir, former member of Icelandic band múm. He released his debut solo album, Down There, on October 26, 2010.[4]

In April, 2013, it was announced that Portner had formed the group Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks with Angel Deradoorian, former member of Dirty Projectors, and ex-Ponytail drummer Jeremy Hyman. Portner describes the band as "[a] group of three hippies on a road trip through the backwaters of 2013s rural music scene fall prey to a murderous cannibalistic band making..."[5] Their debut album, Enter the Slasher House, came out internationally on April 7, 2014, and a supporting West Coast tour was announced soon after the album's release.[6] Ahead of the album, they released a video for "Little Fang", directed by Portner's sister and featuring a puppet created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop.[7] In 2017, he appeared on Grateful Dead member Mickey Hart's solo album, RAMU.[8]

Personal life

David's sister is Abby Portner, Los Angeles artist and experimental musician, who creates some of Animal Collective's artwork and stage design.[9]

From 2006 to 2008, Portner was married to Icelandic musician Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir,[10][11] also known as Kría Brekkan. Afterwards, he was in a relationship with musician Angel Deradoorian and moved to Los Angeles with her.[12] He currently lives in North Carolina and is in a relationship.[13]

Discography

See also: Animal Collective discography

Studio albums

Title Album details
Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished
(with Panda Bear)
  • Released: August 2000
  • Label: Animal, FatCat
  • Formats: CD, LP
Danse Manatee
(with Panda Bear and Geologist)
  • Released: July 2001
  • Label: Catsup Plate, FatCat
  • Formats: CD, LP
Pullhair Rubeye
(with Kria Brekkan)
Down There
  • Released: October 25, 2010
  • Label: Paw Tracks
Enter the Slasher House
(Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks)
  • Released: April 7, 2014
  • Label: Domino
Eucalyptus
  • Released: July 21, 2017
  • Label: Domino
Cows on Hourglass Pond
  • Released: March 22, 2019
  • Label: Domino
7s
  • Released: February 17, 2023
  • Label: Domino

EPs

Singles

Splits

Appearances

Collaborations

With Mickey Hart
With Terrestrial Tones[clarification needed]

References

  1. ^ Zisser, David (April 1, 2014). "Guitarist Avey Tare dabbles in Slasher Flicks". The Temple News. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  2. ^ Thomas, Fred (n.d.). "Avey Tare". Billboard.
  3. ^ Fitzmaurice, Larry (May 17, 2012). "Update Animal Colletive by Larry Fitzmaurice". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
  4. ^ "Animal Collective's Avey Tare to Release First Solo Album". Pitchfork.com. 30 July 2010. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
  5. ^ "Animal Collective's Avey Tare forms Slasher Flicks, announces tour dates - Consequence of Sound". Consequence of Sound. 10 April 2013.
  6. ^ Jeremy Gordon (2014-06-24). "Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks Announce Tour". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
  7. ^ "Video: Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks: "Little Fang", Starring a Jim Henson Puppet | News | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2014-03-09.
  8. ^ "Spotlight: Avey Tare on _Eucalyptus_ and Working with Mickey Hart". Relix.com. 4 January 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  9. ^ "An Artwork History of Animal Collective via Abby Portner Part One" Archived 2016-02-05 at the Wayback Machine, Field Day London Blog, London, 8 May 2013. Retrieved on 19 June 2013.
  10. ^ "Kria Brekkan" Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine, La Blogotheque, 5 December 2006. Retrieved on 13 July 2014.
  11. ^ "THE SELF-TITLED INTERVIEW: Avey Tare of Animal Collective", Self-Titled Mag, 19 October 2010. Retrieved on 13 July 2014.
  12. ^ "ARTIST OF THE MONTH: Deradoorian". Self-titledmag.com. Archived from the original on 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  13. ^ "Catching up with Avey Tare". Aquariumdrunkard.com. 28 April 2020.
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