Ah yes, chillwave. That oft-referenced, uber-hip, bastard child of other established and celebrated genres has definitely made its mark. This musical reinterpretation of organic beauty as filtered by technology has produced a handful of noteworthy artists, albums and songs proving it much larger than a microgenre. Still, how will we know when chillwave is on the downturn and its fifteen minute fame clock begins to flash in red? Let's start with Exhibit A. One of the beneficiaries of the genre's crest is Chaz Bundick, aka Toro Y Moi. His first album Causers Of This is considered one of the foundation elements of chillwave, featuring instruments that are bent and phazed beyond recognition. It is more of a experience than a listen as the tracks carry only remnants of the sounds his instruments and voice originally made. Definitely challenging, always striking and at times undeniably beautiful, Toro Y Moi established that he could take his influences, push them through the meat grinder of studio tricks and make something entirely fresh. On his next effort, Underneath The Pine, it seems that Bundick abandons the chillwave construct with a hefty sense of bravery opting for less studio process and revealing a confidence that no longer needs the arctic blanket that swathed his earlier music.
The opener "Intro/Chi Chi" is pure shoegaze with no chaser that sets a misleading expectation right away. It is grand and sprawling which makes the next track "New Beat" a bit jarring with its non-filtered funk flavor. The loving groove is flush with influence: Prince, Chicago house, Hammond organ via Blue Note. It feels like the shackles of second guessing have been removed causing Bundick to throw his hands up to rejoice. Tracks such as "Go With You", "Got Blinded" and "How I Know", with their otherworldly bleeps, xylophone tickles and retro organ settings, channel the space-age bachelor pad sound that Henry Mancini and Burt Bachrach created and Stereolab modernized. "Divina" and "Before I'm Done" get drowsy and atmospheric as Toro Y Moi comes down with a case of Francophilia. By this time, any consideration for Toro Y Moi's past sound is forgotten as the music throughout Underneath The Pine is endearing, joyous and, above all, fully coherent.
Toro Y Moi gets back to the business of getting funky on "Still Sound" where the groove is so smooth, you expect to see backup singers stepping in sync for the music video. (Check out the actual video at the bottom of this post.) Although his vocals are thick with reverb, this is a throwback R&B jam to make you blow the dust off those Commodores LPs. Finally, Underneath The Pine gets around to showcasing some chillwave chops on "Good Hold". However, the slight pitch bends and breezy synth soundscapes are no more than a slight afterthought, proving that his bag of tricks is capacious, varied and accumulating in perpetuum. Finishing up is the languishing "Elise" that at least loosely carries the chillwave aesthetic. The song drifts along and fades away as if the simple groove could last forever. It becomes noticeable upon the finish of Underneath The Pine that this was a statement record for Chaz Bundick, proving that he much more than a purveyor of chillwave. As for the genre itself, it remains to be seen if we are in the midst of the final bows. Losing someone as talented as Toro Y Moi doesn't help.
Toro Y Moi will be headlining two shows at the Empty Bottle on April 5. Buy your tickets here.
Right-click to download "Still Sound" for free here. Right-click to download "New Beat" here.
Purchase Underneath the Pine here.
Toro Y Moi - New Beat
Toro Y Moi - Got Blinded
Toro Y Moi - How I Know
Toro Y Moi - Still Sound
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