Wednesday, April 21, 2010

mp3/CD Review: Life of Leisure EP by Washed Out


I'm probably going to see the dream-pop band Beach House this Friday, God willing, if I can track down a press pass. They're good at writing dreamy, atmospheric stuff and I'm sure they'll be a fun show. When I was checking the dates for the show I noticed that a band called Washed Out was announced to open for them. I knew they weren't local and I hadn't heard of them so I bought the band's, who turned out to be just one guy from North Carolina, debut "Life of Leisure" EP and I was blown away.

Washed Out is a perfect act to open for Beach House which falls into a genre called dreampop because of the shimmery, surreal, textures they use in their music and Washed Out seems to from a similar school even though he's more dependent on electronic beats and samples than traditional rock instruments. I heard one reviewer compare his stuff to a sort of modern interpretation of Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark and I can totally hear that because Washed Out's music is definitely dreamy but still falls composition and length wise into pop structure.
I kind of hear echoes of some of Cut Copy's stuff in his music which is a great compliment coming from me because I freaking love Cut Copy. If you haven't heard of Cut Copy they're a poppy, Australian, electronic-themed rock band that just makes me want to dance. Like I said about Beach House, Cut Copy is more rock than electronic but the two bands definitely have things in common.

Here's a good song by Cut Copy:

Washed Out has caught the attention of Pitchfork magazine making the top on hundred list with the song "Feel it all around":

The entire EP is filled with songs of a similar style: sample-laden, enveloping, enthralling electronic pop music filled with echoey vocals and infectious beats. At a length of only six songs, some of my favorite tracks are Hold Out, New Theory, and Get Up. I can't wait to see him live and am eagerly waiting for a longer EP sometime in the future.



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