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Feed the Animals
Feed the Animals
Studio album by Girl Talk
Released June 19, 2008
Genre Mashup, electronic, dance
Length 53:53
Label Illegal Art
Format CD, LP, digital download
Producer Girl Talk
Girl Talk chronology
Bone Hard Zaggin Feed the Animals All Day
(2006) (2008) (2010)

Feed the Animals is the fourth album by American mashup musician Girl Talk. Illegal Art released the album in digital download format on June 19, 2008 through their website, using a "pay what you want" pricing system.[1] The album utilizes 322 different samples, with some minor original instrumentation from Girl Talk himself.[2] It received generally positive reviews from critics, scoring 76/100 on review aggregate website Metacritic.[3]

Background[]

Following in the style of Night Ripper, all of the album's tracks segue into each other; describing this, Girl Talk explained: "The sound naturally evolved, and eventually, I had enough material to put out full-length album in this style."[4] The album was created as one long piece of music and then subsequently broken into individual songs.[5]

Release[]

Feed the Animals was released digitally by Illegal Art through their website on June 19, 2008.[1] The label implemented "pay what you want" pricing system for those purchasing Feed the Animals, which has since been implemented on other Girl Talk albums.[1] Users choosing to pay $0.00 receive the album in individual song files, but must choose from the following options explaining their choice of price beforehand: "I may donate later"; "I can't afford to pay"; "I don't really like Girl Talk"; "I don't believe in paying for music"; "I have already purchased this album"; "I don't value music made from sampling"; "I am part of the press, radio, or music industry", or "other reasons".[6] Those paying $5 can access FLAC files and a one-file seamless MP3 version of the album; for $10, users can obtain a CD copy.[1]

Girl Talk has stated that the system was implemented to "make it easier for people to get their hands on the music, which is my number one priority."[4] A CD issue was planned for release on September 23, 2008, but manufacturing issues involving their production forced the date to be pushed back to November 11, 2008.[7] Wham City Records was to handle the album's vinyl issue, but a release never sufficed.[6]

Illegal Art reissued the album on vinyl on September 30, 2020.[8]

Leak[]

On March 19, 2008, a purported leak of Feed the Animals was released to the Internet and spread quickly on torrent networks.[9] The next day, Gillis posted a message on his MySpace account to assure that the version was a fake.[9] The original artist, Speaky, soon apologized, explaining that the leaked album was in fact his album Mashcore Volume 2 and that he had posted the album under its correct name but it was subsequently retagged.[9]

Title and cover[]

Visual artist Andrew Strasser, who has worked closely with Girl Talk throughout his career, designed the album's cover, which features the initials "GT" burning on the front lawn of a suburban house. Strasser also coined the title Feed the Animals, as Girl Talk later explained: "We noticed that anytime the [tour] inflatables were placed relatively close to the crowd someone would get their hands on it and completely tear it apart or crowd surf it back. Andrew started referring to setting up the visuals as 'feeding the animals.' It went a little bit further and we started referring to the shows from both our standpoint and the fans as feeding the animals. The shows are everyone's time to just get wild and enjoy themselves for that day."[10]

Critical reception[]

Feed the Animals received generally positive reviews from critics.[3] Robert Christgau, writing for MSN Music, graded the album "A" and wrote: "...Gregg Gillis has plenty to say about music. What he has to say about life... remains more limited. Nevertheless, sequences here give me hope. In my favorite, Ice Cube's 'AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted' turns into Hot Chocolate's 'Every 1's a Winner'."[11] Michaelangelo Matos of The A.V. Club attributed the album's appeal to "Gillis' sense of sonic proportion", which "gives the whole mix a curvaceousness that make even the most unnatural tandems seem perfectly logical."[12] Ryan Dombal of Pitchfork rated Feed the Animals 8.0/10 and wrote that "[It] helps to solidify Gillis' role as the supreme 80s-baby pop synthesizer. And while others have attempted to claw up to his lofty position, no one has managed to match his unique mix of diversity, pace, and open-mindedness".[13]

In his Rolling Stone review of the album, Christian Hoard praised the album and noted: "Rarely is postmodern art such bloody good fun."[14] Tim O'Neil of PopMatters was also enthusiastic: "Feed the Animals is a wonderful achievement, but don't take my pseudo-intellectual pontification as proof of anything, go listen to it yourself. Albums like these are actively changing the way people think about and listen to pop music, and in doing so Girl Talk is contributing to a very long lineage of conceptual innovators stretching back all the way to Thomas Edison, a stream of engineers and musicians dedicated to liberating music from the tyranny of direct representation of physical sounds."[15]

Accolades[]

Year-end lists[]

Source List Position Ref.
The A.V. Club Best Music of 2008 28 [16]
Blender Top 33 Albums of 2008 2 [17]
Robert Christgau Dean's List: Albums 12 [18]
Consequence of Sound The Top 100 Albums of 2008 6 [19]
Delusions of Adequacy Top Albums of 2008 15 [17]
Mondo Sonoro Top Albums of 2008 31 [17]
No Ripcord Top 50 Albums of 2008 17 [20]
Paste Signs of Life 2008: Best Music 7 [21]
Pitchfork The 50 Albums of 2008 35 [22]
PopMatters The Best 60 Albums of 2008 39 [23]
Rolling Stone Top 50 Albums of 2008 24 [24]
Screenagers The Best Albums of 2008 9 [17]
Sputnikmusic Best Albums of 2008 24 [17]
Sun Media Top Albums of 2008 5 [17]
Technikart Top Albums of 2008 11 [17]
Treble The Top 50 Albums of 2008 48 [25]
Under the Radar Best Albums of 2008 35 [17]
The Village Voice Pazz & Jop: Albums 15 [26]

Decade-end lists[]

Source List Position Ref.
Consequence of Sound Top of the Decade: The Albums 44 [27]
Metromix Denver Top 40 Albums of the 2000s 8 [17]
Screenagers Top 100 Albums of the 2000s 75 [17]
Treble The Best Albums of the '00s 104 [28]

Track listing[]

  1. "Play Your Part (Pt. 1)" – 4:45
  2. "Shut the Club Down" – 3:07
  3. "Still Here" – 3:57
  4. "What It's All About" – 4:15
  5. "Set It Off" – 3:42
  6. "No Pause" – 3:12
  7. "Like This" – 3:21
  8. "Give Me a Beat" – 4:12
  9. "Hands in the Air" – 4:20
  10. "In Step" – 3:23
  11. "Let Me See You" – 4:04
  12. "Here's the Thing" – 4:46
  13. "Don't Stop" – 2:58
  14. "Play Your Part (Pt. 2)" – 3:25

Samples[]

Feed the Animals samples

Complete list of Feed the Animals samples, as printed in the album's liner notes

"Play Your Part (Pt. 1)"[]

"Shut the Club Down"[]

"Still Here"[]

"What It's All About"[]

"Set It Off"[]

"No Pause"[]

"Like This"[]

"Give Me a Beat"[]

"Hands in the Air"[]

"In Step"[]

"Let Me See You"[]

"Here's the Thing"[]

"Don't Stop"[]

"Play Your Part (Pt. 2)"[]

Unknown samples[]

The following songs are listed in the sampled source material section of the Feed the Animals liner notes, but the points at which they are sampled are currently unknown.

Release history[]

Images Release date Format Label Catalog no. Ref.(s)
Feed the Animals June 19, 2008 Digital download Illegal Art N/A [1]
November 11, 2008 Compact disc Illegal Art IA117 [7][29]
December 2008
(South Korea)
[30]
Feed the Animals September 30, 2020 12" vinyl
(reissue)
Illegal Art IA117LP [8]

Personnel[]

Chart performance[]

Feed the Animals is, to date, Girl Talk's only release to have charted on an official national singles chart, debuting at its peak position of number 83 on the Australian ARIA singles chart in late January 2009 and remaining on the chart for an additional week at number 98 before dropping out.[31]

Chart (2009) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart (ARIA)[31] 83

Trivia[]

Notes[]

  • A. ^ Incorrectly titled "Here We Go" in the liner notes.
  • B. ^ ^ Incorrectly titled "Get Your Hands Up" in the liner notes.
  • C. ^ Incorrectly credited to The Crooklyn Clan in the liner notes.
  • D. ^ Incorrectly titled "Work It!" in the liner notes.

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Kreps, Daniel (2008-06-19). Girl Talk Unleashes Pay What You Want Album 'Feed the Animals'. Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  2. Baio, Andy (2008-10-29). Girl Talk's Feed the Animals: The Official Sample List. Waxy. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Feed The Animals – Girl Talk. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Toben, Graham. Girl Talk Feeds the Animals. MetroWize. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Girl Talk/Gregg Gillis On New Album, Music Industry. The Washington Post (2008-07-29). Retrieved on 2010-05-02.
  6. 6.0 6.1 Brandon (2008-06-19). Girl Talk's Feed The Animals Is Out Today. Stereogum. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  7. 7.0 7.1 Thompson, Paul (2008-10-15). Girl Talk Video Blogs From Tour, Animals CD Delayed. Pitchfork. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  8. 8.0 8.1 Minsker, Evan (2020-09-30). Girl Talk Reissuing 2 Albums on Vinyl, Shares New Song “Fallin’” With Bas: Listen. Pitchfork. Retrieved on 2021-09-30.
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 Yiyo (2008-03-19). Girl Talk. Deaf Indie Elephants. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  10. TSScrew (2008-09-04). TSS Presents Smoking Sessions With Girl Talk. Uproxx. Retrieved on 2014-01-28.
  11. Christgau, Robert (2008-10). Consumer Guide. MSN Music. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  12. Matos, Michaelangelo (2008-06-30). Girl Talk: Feed The Animals. The A.V. Club. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  13. Dombal, Ryan (2008-06-27). Girl Talk: Feed the Animals. Pitchfork. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  14. Hoard, Christian (2008-07-10). Feed The Albums: Girl Talk. Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2008-07-23. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  15. O'Neil, Tim (2008-06-22). Girl Talk: Feed the Animals. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  16. A.V. Club's Best Music of 2008. Album of the Year. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 17.7 17.8 17.9 Girl Talk: Feed the Animals. Acclaimed Music. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  18. 2008: Dean's List. robertchristgau.com (2009-01-22). Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  19. Roffman, Michael (2008-12-17). CoS Year-End Report: The Top 100 Albums: #25 – #1. Consequence of Sound. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  20. Top 50 Albums of 2008 (Part Two). No Ripcord. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  21. Signs of Life 2008: Best Music. Paste (2008-11-21). Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  22. The 50 Albums of 2008. Pitchfork (2008-12-19). Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  23. The Best Albums of 2008. PopMatters (2008-12-18). Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  24. brandon (2008-12-10). Rolling Stone's Top 50 Albums Of 2008. Stereogum. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  25. The Top 50 Albums of 2008. Treble (2008-12-15). Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  26. New York Pazz and Jop Albums. The Village Voice. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  27. Roffman, Michael (2008-12-17). CoS Top 100 Albums of the Decade: 60–41. Consequence of Sound. Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  28. The Best Albums of the '00s. Treble (2010-01-18). Retrieved on 2014-02-06.
  29. Girl Talk – Feed The Animals (CD, Album). Discogs. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  30. Girl Talk – Feed the Animals Korea CD *Sealed*. eBay. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.
  31. 31.0 31.1 ARIA Top 100 Albums ‒ Week Commencing 2nd February 2009 (PDF; p. 6). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved on 2014-02-02.

External links[]


Girl Talk albums and singles
Discography
Studio albums
Secret Diary Unstoppable Night Ripper Feed the Animals All Day
Secret Diary
(2002)
Unstoppable
(2003)
Night Ripper
(2006)
Feed the Animals
(2008)
All Day
(2010)
Extended plays
Stop Cleveland Hate Bone Hard Zaggin Broken Ankles
Stop Cleveland Hate
(2004)
Bone Hard Zaggin'
(2006)
Broken Ankles
(2014)
Singles
Believe in Magic Placeholder other Placeholder other Placeholder other Placeholder other
"Believe in Magic"
(2011)
"Tolerated"
(2014)
"Trouble in Paradise"
(2018)
"No Problem"
(2019)
"Toolie"
(2020)
Placeholder other Placeholder other
"Santos Party House"
(2020)
"Fallin'"
(2020)
Girl Talk songs
Discography
Secret Diary "Let's Start This Party Right" • "I Want You Back" • "Ffun Haave To" • "What If..." • "Time to Get Glamorous" • "Unicorn vs. Gravity" • "The Right Stuff" • "Fun in the Sun" • "Jumpin(g)" • "Friends 4-Ever"
Unstoppable "All Eyes on Me" • "Non-Stop Party Now" • "Touch 2 Feel" • "Pump It Up" • "Bang This in the Club" • "Bodies Hit the Floor" • "The Feeling" • "Happen" • "Cleveland, Shake" • "Keeping the Beat" • "Step to It" • "Can't Stop"
Night Ripper "Once Again" • "That's My DJ" • "Hold Up" • "Too Deep" • "Smash Your Head" • "Minute by Minute" • "Ask About Me" • "Summer Smoke" • "Friday Night" • "Hand Clap" • "Give and Go" • "Bounce That" • "Warm It Up" • "Double Pump" • "Overtime" • "Peak Out"
Bone Hard Zaggin' "Pure Magic" • "LC and Lo"
Feed the Animals "Play Your Part (Pt. 1)" • "Shut the Club Down" • "Still Here" • "What It's All About" • "Set It Off" • "No Pause" • "Like This" • "Give Me a Beat" • "Hands in the Air" • "In Step" • "Let Me See You" • "Here's the Thing" • "Don't Stop" • "Play Your Part (Pt. 2)"
All Day "Oh No" • "Let It Out" • "That's Right" • "Jump on Stage" • "This Is the Remix" • "On and On" • "Get It Get It" • "Down for the Count" • "Make Me Wanna" • "Steady Shock" • "Triple Double" • "Every Day"
Broken Ankles "Broken Ankles Intro" • "Tolerated" • "Tell Me Yeah" • "I Can Hear Sweat" • "Suicide" • "Lived It"
Other songs "Killing a Material Girl" • "Blue and Green and Brown Ousado" • "Let's Run This" • "On Nesbit" • "Andy van Slyke Marijuana Sensitivity" • "Believe in Magic" • "Oh Baby" • "Trouble in Paradise" • "No Problem" • "Outta Pocket" • "Toolie" • "Santos Party House" • "Fallin'"
Remixes "Cellphone's Dead" • "Let's Call It Off" • "Knife" • "Gasolina" • "Non-Tradition Ball Head"
Other productions "Cool as Hell" • "Addiction" • "Always Love You" • "First Thing's First" • "Steam Room" • "Lil Bitch" • "The Hook Up" • "Getcha Roll On" • "Bubble" • "Cinderella Story" • "Boats & Hoes"
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