‘Have Good Dreams’ is the Brand New Album from Animal Prince!

‘Have Good Dreams’ is the Brand New Album from Animal Prince!

Animal Prince is the musical vehicle for Fae Nageon de Lestang and Grant McLeod, two wonderfully talented musicians who shone for years in Florida and beyond in their superb group Flat Land. Since their move to the San Francisco area, they have continued playing. As McLeod notes:

“Animal Prince started in 2016 as Fae’s solo project during the Flat Land times. Project has certainly evolved into this being the first full length record!”

And now it is here! Have Good Dreams features McLeod, keyboards, synths, drums; Fae, vocals, violin, synths; and Paul Martin, upright and electric basses. Guest musicians include Hunter Diamond, flute, clarinet, and saxophone, on “Impossible” and  Seth Adam Lynn, harp, on “Any Day” and “roygbiv.” The album was mixed by Trayer de la Torre and mastered by Zac Emerson of Doom Trip Records.

Animal Prince produces music that absolutely defines genre — ethereal, soaring, riveting, joyous, and many more adjectives — their vintage-pop project.

Have Good Dreams

You could easily drift off into space with opening track “Back Home In My Head,” which falls into a bouncy groove, with Fae’s voice gloriously multitracked. The percussion element helps cement the track, especially McLeod’s vibes, along with Fae’s violin.

“Parallel Lines” offers more of the group’s magic, focusing again on her lovely voice, inventive percussion, and beautiful sounds.

Lynn’s harp makes this all-too-short track “roygbiv” (the colors of the rainbow) float on air. Lynn and Natalie DePergola front the brilliant Tampa group Katara, and they both perform with Animal Prince during their shows in Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina.

“Any Day” could be a hit on any pop radio station willing to jettison the junk they peddle. The fully-formed song really benefits from Martin’s excellent bass work and the swooping harp from Lynn.

Headphones are recommended for best listening to this album, especially “Didn’t You Notice,” so full as a recording. Martin’s bass and Fae’s violin match up so well here, supporting her lovely vocals.

Birds chirping and gorgeous percussive earth sounds create a beautiful vision with “brother earth.”

“Red Mansion” could almost be a bedtime lullaby, at once reminding of “Fool On the Hill” and “Pearls” by Sade, Fae’s vocals riveting.

The most uptempo song on the album is “Impossible,” fueled by the brilliant playing of reeds master Diamond. His soaring work, the violins, McLeod’s punchy drumbeat, and Fae’s captivating vocals all stand out.

“cumulonimbus 3000” is the only instrumental track, although Fae’s vocalese incantations are heard in the background. It is introduced by beautiful woodblock percussion and synths. Heer pizzicato violin is in forefront.

The album finishes with more great percussion on “Who You Are,” another uptempo feature for the group concerning the question: “What you wear is not who are.” Fae explains:

Inspired by classic yacht rock ballads by artists like ELO & Hall and Oates, “Who You Are” is a nostalgic, feel-good, indie summer anthem celebrating a closeted drag queen’s road to self-discovery.

“I was looking at old photos, reflecting on how far away those old versions of myself feel. If you allow it to be, life is a constant journey of self discovery and exploration. We’re continually shedding exoskeletons and growing closer to who we really are at our core — and it’s always changing. It’s something the queer and trans community embody in such an empowering and inspiring way to me… so I wrote this song for them.”

And, of course, their all-too-infrequent live performances are deluxe.

Get the album on any of your usual platforms, and check the band’s merch as well.

Animal Prince
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