My Five Song Playlist:

Chillwave was (is?) a music genre made popular in the late-aughts. It combined retro sound styles of the 80's and early 90's with a focus on instrumentation instead of vocalization and played a huge part of my mid-20's. I recently started rediscovering my love of the genre thanks to rediscovering this blog which I created around that time. So, this is My Five Song Playlist: Chillwave Edition.

1. 

Washed Out – Hold Out (Life Of Leisure)

Sounding like the soundtrack off a Miami Vice episode, Washed Out's “Hold Out” sends the listener into an urban setting of artificial lights and night time beach scenes. Mostly known for the hipster hit “Feel It All Around”, Washed Out alongside Toro Y Moi are credited as two of the progenitors of the genre Chillwave. Mixing vintage sounds, minimalism and lo-fi vocals; Washed Out's “Life Of Leisure” was definitely one of the my favorite albums during the summer of 2009. My buddy had just bought a sailboat and many weekends were spent sailing to Catalina Island and kicking back to good tunes and watching the sun set over the Pacific. I even got a chance to see Greene perform live at a small venue in LA before many people had heard of him (hipster cred definitely not in question). Life of Leisure holds a special place for me as it always brings me back to a time when the living was easy and fucks were barely given.

2.

Toro Y Moi – Blessa (Causers Of This)

“Blessa” was the absolute first track I heard of in what would later come to be know as Chillwave. “Blessa”, like “Feel It All Around”, is in essence what I think of when I recall the golden age of the genre. Blending nostalgia eliciting sounds, repetitive motifs and Chazwick Dradley Bundick's laid-back vocals. “Blessa” sends you into a trance-like state that could only be described as “Chillwave”. The year '09 was a weird time for me, I was struggling with growing up and figuring out what I wanted to do. I had a rocky start to my 20's and it was around the time Chillwave became a thing that things started to simmer down and I felt like I was on track to my goals. Music has an interesting way of bringing you back to those moments of youthful naivety. (side note: Toro Y Moi has a new album “What For?” dropping April 7th and it is amazing. You should check it and his other albums out.)

3.

Neon Indian – Psychic Chasms (Psychic Chasms)

Utilizing psychedelic sounds and funky synths, Neon Indian aka Alan Paloma was an artisan of intricate and unique music. Psychic Chasms, off the album of the same name, has a delicate yet hard, synthesizer driven quality to it that exemplifies the retro Chillwave sound. Paloma's hallucinogenic lyrical imagery is perfectly balanced by a simple drum beat and layers of glorious synthesizers. Polama definitely has a voice that just made you feel cool by proxy of listening. I wasn't a hardcore fan of Neon Indian like I was of the aforementioned acts and I couldn't say I liked all the tracks put out, but I still recall many a good time hearing the songs I did like. (Side note: Paloma also was the lead for the dance oriented, indietronica act VEGA, also worth looking into or rediscovering.)

4.

Com Truise – Brokendate (Galactic Melt)

Com Truise is like the best parts of 80's Synthesizer Music rolled into a minimalistic trip-hop package. You couldn't help but feel like you were cruising in one of Syd Mead's TRON cityscapes or a Vangelis-esque music video. The beat builds with a staccato synth bassline and slowly more layers of electronic awesomeness join to form the Voltron of Chillwave songs. I've seen Com Truise live three times and every show was perfection. As these things often go, the crowds got bigger and I got older. Shows in your late-20's really aren't the same as they were in your early-20's.

5.

Tycho – “Ascension” (Dive)

I was kinda late to the Tycho scene. I remember people talking about them just after I graduated high school, but I was still hung up on French Touch and Disco House to pay notice. On top of that, I already was a fan of The Album Leaf, whom I felt was similar yet superior in sound. When I finally did give them a chance, the album Dive had just come out and I was gearing up to move to San Francisco. I am so glad I did give them a listen though. Tycho was the perfect soundtrack to my first year in SF. I lived two streets away from Ocean Beach in the Outer Sunset District. Most of my days were spent fighting off depression from the perennial fog and visiting the Pacific Ocean. Ascension, like its title infers, elevates you to higher plane of relaxation and benign escapism. It has all the hallmarks of a Tycho jam: synthesizers, ambient instrumentation, layers of trip-hop sampling and just the right amount of traditional rock.

And there you have it, the Chillwave edition of and very first My Five Song Playlist. I plan on doing a series of these posts. The next playlist will be of songs randomly chosen by either iTunes or Spotify. I hope you enjoyed it and maybe, your inner-hipster was reminded of days past and memories still cherished.

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 Later days,
- Todd B.