"We always wanted as many people as possible to get into our music and appreciate it," Portner says. "We just always wanted it to happen our way."
The band released its first album in 2000, but the members have been friends for about 17 years. They play as three personalities under the umbrella name of Animal Collective. Portner is Avey Tare. Noah Lennox is Panda Bear. Brian Weitz is Geologist.
Portner grew up in Owings Mills, Lennox is from Roland Park and Weitz is from Lutherville. A fourth member of the band who's sort of on hiatus now, Josh Dibb, or Deakin, also grew up in Roland Park.
Portner says Maryland's landscape has truly influenced the band. But not directly. It's just that each of the bandmates is drawn to the area's woodsy, tranquil suburban vibe. They recorded the album Campfire Songs on a porch in Monkton - Portner's aunt's house.
And, while they were writing material for Merriweather Post Pavilion, they thought about the weather, about being outside, about playing music on cool nights as the sun went down.
"It reminded us of growing up in Maryland and hanging out on porches," Portner says. "Chilling out and listening to a lot of music. It gave us that feeling of autumn and spring. That was a really good time for us."
Asked how exactly the Mid-Atlantic greenery translates into the album, Portner says, "You really have to hear it. It's mysterious. What we've always been interested in doing is making landscapes in our music - not just melodies and tunes you can hum in the car.
"To us, it's always got to be so much more."
Paul Hulleberg, a music teacher at the Park School, remembers Portner's early forays into music. He remembers a young Port-ner performing Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" with an electric guitar.
And at Cabaret, a school open-mike night where students could sing and strum, Hulle-berg remembers the nascent performances with Dibb and Weitz. Portner and Weitz graduated with the class of 1997, while Dibb was a year ahead.
"There's something ineffable about [Portner's] stage presence. He's very, very captivating," Hulleberg says. "There was a sincerity to it. You could tell that he really loves music and really sees the value in every single kind of music. He's never been categorical or territorial. He really sees the magic."
Hulleberg took his wife and son to see the band at Towson's Recher Theater a few years ago. And he's played the band's album Sung Tongs for his middle-school students.
