For those of you who’ve never heard of Chaz Bear aka Toro y Moi, he is considered a pioneer of chillwave, a subgenre of alternative music. It was only popular for a single summer in 2009. Fortunately enough, Chaz saw the fleeting popularity of this category and sought to hone his other musical skills. This is clear in his new album Outer Peace where we hear his older influences mixed with a new style reminiscent of 80s pop and a bit of funk as well.
Outer Peace starts out strong, with the opening track “Fading.” It sets a tone for the album that’s incredibly fun. The tone keeps ramping up with songs like “Ordinary Pleasure” that are really bouncy with great rhythm and vocals to boot. It goes even further with the incredibly funky “Laws of the Universe” a song that could make almost any foot tap along to it.
Unfortunately the album veers away from its original vibe and steps on the brakes hard. While I’m sure songs like “Miss Me” and “New House” are good and could definitely work on another project, forgettable tracks like those previously mentioned, “Monte Carlo” and “Baby Drive It Down” are especially detrimental to the experience.
The project picks back up, however bringing back the original fun energy and presents songs that are even funkier with “Freelance” and “Who Am I.” Eventually it ends with the prettiest song on the album, “50-50” that puts a neat little bow on top of the whole thing.
I can’t recommend listening to “Ordinary Pleasure” and “Miss Me” enough, even though I did rag on “Miss Me” a bit, it’s still a solid song.
The album is a 7/10. There are only ten songs and it runs for 30 minutes so it’s nice, short and simple. It’s great background music and if you decide to pay attention, it’s gets very complex and psychedelic at times. I’m looking forward to Toro’s next project, whenever it may come.
Outer Peace starts out strong, with the opening track “Fading.” It sets a tone for the album that’s incredibly fun. The tone keeps ramping up with songs like “Ordinary Pleasure” that are really bouncy with great rhythm and vocals to boot. It goes even further with the incredibly funky “Laws of the Universe” a song that could make almost any foot tap along to it.
Unfortunately the album veers away from its original vibe and steps on the brakes hard. While I’m sure songs like “Miss Me” and “New House” are good and could definitely work on another project, forgettable tracks like those previously mentioned, “Monte Carlo” and “Baby Drive It Down” are especially detrimental to the experience.
The project picks back up, however bringing back the original fun energy and presents songs that are even funkier with “Freelance” and “Who Am I.” Eventually it ends with the prettiest song on the album, “50-50” that puts a neat little bow on top of the whole thing.
I can’t recommend listening to “Ordinary Pleasure” and “Miss Me” enough, even though I did rag on “Miss Me” a bit, it’s still a solid song.
The album is a 7/10. There are only ten songs and it runs for 30 minutes so it’s nice, short and simple. It’s great background music and if you decide to pay attention, it’s gets very complex and psychedelic at times. I’m looking forward to Toro’s next project, whenever it may come.