Carles. "Animal Collective is a Band Created By/For/On the Internet." Hipster Runoff. 13 January 2009. <http://www.hipsterrunoff.com/2009/01/animal-collective-is-a-band-created-byforon-the-internet.html>

In this blog post, satirical/ironic blogger "Carles" produces one of the most-discussed theses on Internet music of 2009. He posits that the band Animal Collective's most recent release, Merriweather Post Pavillion, was successful specifically because it catered to the tastes of it's internet-savvy audience. In doing so, Animal Collective has thereby defined what it means to be an "internet band": how to walk the fine line between mainstream and authentic taste; how to produce internet hype without immediate backlash; how to produce revenue despite a full-album leak. Hipster Runoff also references the importance of online-criticism mediums like Pitchfork and meme-production in determining the success and respectability of a band. Ultimately, he concludes that the success of Animal Collective is not only the result of but also a reflection upon the band's internet following: a "symbiotic relationship" uniquely achieved.

This Hipster Runoff post is important in the way that it was reflected on throughout the blogging community; it was taken with unusual sincerity, and both praised and criticized. The story of Animal Collective's new rise to prominence (Merriweather Post Pavillion is their fifth album) tells the story of the new internet marketing machine. This CD epitomizes a particular kind of marketing and revenue model on the internet. The Hipster Runoff post takes this a step further, as it analyzes how and why the internet-branding of Animal Collective was successful, and the way the branding of Animal Collective simultaneously contributes to a branding of self. Animal Collective and the Hipster Runoff analysis is an example of the way that online music critics, independent bloggers, and their music-savvy audience are responding to a particular kind of online music marketing.