MJ Lenderman and Animal Collective Collaborate on Album for Hurricane Helena Victims

Music Artists Unite for Hurricane Relief

MJ Lenderman and Animal Collective are among the artists who contributed to the new album benefiting the victims of Hurricane Helen in Asheville, North Carolina.

Impact of Hurricane Helen

In September, Hurricane Helen swept through the southeastern states of the United States, causing extensive damage in regions such as Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and more. The hurricane resulted in an assessment of 221 deaths and over 78.7 billion dollars in losses.

Now, the new compilation album “We Love It Here” has been released to raise funds for Lamplight AVL—a non-profit organization that supports those affected by the disaster within the Asheville art community. You can purchase the digital version here or pre-order a limited edition vinyl copy that includes an additional collective track by Animal Collective titled “Best Things in the Future”—available here.

Alongside the aforementioned artists, the compilation also features contributions from Jump from Love, Reggie Watts, Squirrel Flower, Hello Mary, Nightlands, Fust, Green-House, and Ploating Action, as well as a collaborative track titled Yellow featuring Heretic actress Sophie Thatcher.

The project was organized by Drop of Sun Studios, who felt inspired to support the local artistic community after witnessing their struggle for recovery in the wake of the hurricane.

“The incredible scope of these previously unreleased tracks reflects a drop of the core principle of Drop of Sun, which is to contribute to the growth of the environment, allowing artists to create freely and endlessly,” explained Adam McDanel, the founder of Drop of Sun, in an interview with Pitchfork. “Being a resource for Greensboro’s artistic community has fostered wonderful, long-term relationships, amazing songs like this, and a platform for communication and support in difficult times. We are excited to share these exclusive tracks with you.”

Festival Cancellations and Artist Updates

Hurricane Helen impacted several shows and festivals that were scheduled to take place in the southeastern United States, including various dates on the Lenderman tour. The Southern Star Festival in Alabama was canceled, while some performances at Louder Than Life in Kentucky were cut short due to inclement weather. Artists such as Quarter of Change, Mannequin Pussy, Billy Joel, and Sting had to cancel or postpone their concerts in states like North Carolina and Florida because of the severe storms.

In related news, MJ Lenderman announced last month that he would no longer be touring with the band due to his own busy schedule. His fourth solo LP, ‘Manning Fireworks,’ was released in September and secured a spot on NME‘s list of the 50 best albums of 2024. The track “She Leaves with You” was also featured in NME‘s 50 best songs of 2024.

“The poignant songs can capture a multitude of emotions: despair, uncertainty, and utter dismay. Conversely, MJ Lenderman’s “She Leaves with You” embodies a sense of clarity and heartbreaking stillness in its refrain: “It gets dark, everyone has a job,” NME remarked. “A blackened, melancholic sound in its most illuminated form.”