I wrote about the original version of “My Girls” back in 2021. This one opens very differently, with a distorted child’s voice saying “there isn’t much that I feel I need/a solid soul and the blood I bleed.” Then we jump right into an almost exuberant electronic beat punctuated by a child’s sighing. The Tears for Fears version is much more compressed; it’s less atmospheric and hollow than the original. As a result, the song is also less shimmery.

However, that’s not to the cover’s detriment. Tears for Fears is well-suited to cover this song; they’ve penned reflective hits of their own (see “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” or “Break it Down Again”). The vocals here are softer and well-layered, and, as with many covers, you can discern the lyrics more easily.

In terms of preference, I lean towards the Tears for Fears cover. The emptiness of the Animal Collective original is sometimes hard to shake. What do you think?