As chillwave was making its way into the fore of the indie music scene in 2009 and early 2010, it was met with a degree of controversy and skepticism. As the genre began in earnest with debut releases by Neon Indian and Toro y Moi and a pair of EPs by Washed Out, fans praised its ’80s nostalgia and laid-back, hazy sound tailor-made for summer. For others, it sounded too repetitive and homogenous to maintain much staying power; it was less a genre than a one-trick pony.
Now in 2011, the challenge for chillwave’s biggest players is to react to those criticisms and give new life to the genre’s fading relevance. On “Underneath the Pine,” Toro y Moi did this by creating an album rife with danceable immediacy that kept little more than remnants of chillwave’s haze.
For his debut full-length album, “Within and Without,” which was released on July 12, Washed Out — the stage name of USC alumnus Ernest Greene — has opted to do the opposite, instead embracing the genre’s aesthetic and adapting it to great effect.
That point is evident as early as the album’s opening notes on “Eyes Be Closed.” That track builds on reverb-heavy synthesizers with a strong bass line, drums, keyboard and Greene’s all-but-indecipherable vocals. That is, it retains many elements from his past work but includes live instrumentation as well. As Washed Out transitions from a solo bedroom- and laptop-based production to a more complete band, they — and “Within and Without” — have taken on a new energy.
Much of this energy is doubtlessly attributable to Greene’s goals for the album. Speaking with The Daily Gamecock before his sold-out show at New Brookland Tavern on July 1, he acknowledged that “the biggest thing with this new album is that coming into it, I knew that I wanted it to sound more ‘live.’” With his live shows a key consideration in the making of “Within and Without,” it’s little surprise how well it can fill a room with its chilled-out ambiance and command it, at times, with an unmistakable energy.
But Greene is also quite effective when he drops into slower, more easygoing rhythms, as on “Soft,” “You and I” and “Within and Without.” In moments such as these, he trades his energy for loving and sensuality, which are hinted at on the album’s less-than-subtle cover art and are themes that permeate the entirety of this record.
In a way, those moments indicate a shift in his work away from pop and immediacy toward reflection and stepping back. On his breakout single “Feel It All Around,” from his 2009 EP “Life of Leisure,” Greene sings: “You feel it all around yourself / You know it’s yours and no one else’s.” “Its” meaning is left ambiguous, but rather than encourage listeners to consider and feel “it,” Greene instead takes the opportunity on “Within and Without” to introspect himself.
Accordingly, this is not an album that will attempt to influence and define the summer as chillwave did in 2009. Instead, it’s much more content to step back and provide an ambiance or a moment of reflection. “Within and Without” may not command your summer, but you’d be hard pressed to find a better accompaniment.