Ear on TV: Week of 05.04.09 - Animal Collective

For those that stayed up to watch it, the network debut of Animal Collective (on Conan back in October of 2007) was one of music on television's great WTF moments. The band was poised to move from cult favorite to being a top selling indie rock band, but instead of performing a song to expand their audience, Panda Bear and co. instead played the more 'difficult' "#1" amidst surrounded by smoke and flanked by a skeleton (scroll down for video). It surely left more than a few viewers scratching their heads, muttering "what in the world was that?"

Animal Collective are back on television again, and even an hour earlier, appearing Thursday on Letterman. This time out, the album they're promoting, album of the year candidate Merriweather Post Pavilion, is chock-full of Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys goodness, especially the glorious "My Girls," a song that is bound to win them more than a few potential new fans. Eschewing material possessions outside of "four walls and adobe slabs for my girls," the song especially strikes a chord in our troubled economy. It'd be hard to imagine them not playing the song, but then again, they recoiled from the brass ring last time out, so they could end up performing a song from their upcoming as-yet-untitled movie, which promises to be a less accessible venture.

Speaking of coming back for a brass ring recoil (and eschewing material possessions,) the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens, Yusuf Islam, was set to make a couple appearances Tuesday (The View and Late Night With Jimmy Fallon), and embarking touring for the first time in over 33 years in support of his latest release, Roadsinger. Unfortunately, visa troubles have reared their ugly head again with the artist, and he has had to cancel both appearances, along with the two small shows planned in New York and Los Angeles. Sharing a name with a suspected terrorist has made it difficult for the Cat, but you'd think that after all the hullaboo of four years ago, Homeland Security would have "Peace Train" cued up on their iPod by now. Sharon Jones will step in for Yusuf on Fallon, but no word yet on who takes the seat on The View, but there's bound to be some lively discussion about the 'no fly' list as a result. To quote Yusuf from a recent interview: "The idea of being safe is completely understandable, but when you start to misunderstand what kind of person I am, then something's wrong."



Playlist: Picks for the week
Monday, May 4
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Whip (REPEAT)
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Keri Hilson with Kanye West
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Hockey
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Kathleen Madigan
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Adele
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Lykke Li (REPEAT)
Tuesday, May 5
ABC: The View: Yusaf Islam (visa problems)
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Franz Ferdinand
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Jenny Lewis
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Yusuf Islam (visa problems, replaced by Sharon Jones)
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Lily Allen
Wednesday, May 6
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Ben Harper & Relentless7
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Van Morisson
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: The National
SUNDANCE: Spectacle: Elvis Costello With...: Elvis Costello, Herbie Hancock (REPEAT)
Thursday, May 7
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Flo Rida
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Animal Collective
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Black Kids
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Ben Harper & Relentless7
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Black Kids
Friday, May 8
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Chris Cornell
FUEL: The Daily Habit: The Devil Wears Prada
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Ida Maria
SUNDANCE: Crossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul: Baba Zula, Orient Expressions, Duman
Saturday, May 9
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Justin Timberlake, Ciara