Last year's most exhilarating subgenre alternated between the ridiculous names of "chillwave" and "glo-fi." Chaz Bundick, or Toro y Moi, may be the last of the bunch to have his say, but he has two reasons to be excited: Causers of This is the first of two albums he's prepared for 2010 and he's the most diverse artist involved so far. Toro y Moi's versatility is his strong suit; he sews together a patchwork of practically all music imaginable. "Blessa" compounds Hawaiian surf, hesitant down-tempo and Panda Bear's psychotropic pop. The stuttering, off-balance beats on "Freak Love" follow more of the Flying Lotus template, with all of the cascading electronic sounds, and "Talamak" cuts up disco, recoiling drum beats in all directions to give a disoriented blissfulness. By the time he reaches '80s Balearic dance pop with "Low Shoulder" and the title track's dazed and confused Italo House, you get the sense that when he says his music is always changing and evolving, he's not kidding. While he's promised a different second record, I'm hoping he doesn't meander too far from the multiplicity on Causers of This, because there's plenty here to keep us entertained for quite some time.
What can you tell me about the other album you're releasing this year?
It's gonna be different from Causers, more lo-fi. The songwriting is more linear, as opposed to having the ability to move samples and parts around. I've always written different styles of songs at once and the second album is just sort of the result. I usually like to work on guitar-/piano-based stuff and then MIDI-/electronic-based stuff. I tend to get bored when I work on one thing; it's fun to have a challenge and to work out of order.
Do you find the whole "chillwave/glo-fi" thing annoying?
If anything, it helps a lot. I think it familiarizes people with the band, but it's great how these groups have really created their own sound. What's even more amazing is how we all sort of got recognized around the same time.
Is it all just a coincidence then that all of these acts have been discovered at once?
Ha, ha, yeah. I think it's a coincidence. I know that Ernest [Greene of Washed Out] started to get emails from blogs because they found him through my MySpace page. Weird to think of it like that, but it's true!
(Carpark Records)What can you tell me about the other album you're releasing this year?
It's gonna be different from Causers, more lo-fi. The songwriting is more linear, as opposed to having the ability to move samples and parts around. I've always written different styles of songs at once and the second album is just sort of the result. I usually like to work on guitar-/piano-based stuff and then MIDI-/electronic-based stuff. I tend to get bored when I work on one thing; it's fun to have a challenge and to work out of order.
Do you find the whole "chillwave/glo-fi" thing annoying?
If anything, it helps a lot. I think it familiarizes people with the band, but it's great how these groups have really created their own sound. What's even more amazing is how we all sort of got recognized around the same time.
Is it all just a coincidence then that all of these acts have been discovered at once?
Ha, ha, yeah. I think it's a coincidence. I know that Ernest [Greene of Washed Out] started to get emails from blogs because they found him through my MySpace page. Weird to think of it like that, but it's true!
