Review: Toro Y Moi - What For?
By Sammi Nelson, Blogs Editor
[Carpark; 2015]
Rating: 4/5
Key Tracks: “Empty Nesters,” “Lilly,” “Yeah Right”
There are few other musicians in this world who can compete with Toro Y Moi when it comes to making dreamy electronic music.
Chaz Bundick, known for his stage name Toro Y Moi and side project Les Sins, brings the persona of summer to life in his music. It’s filled with love, angst and enough drug references to provide a chill-worthy atmosphere for any young adult.
Toro Y Moi’s previous album, Underneath the Pine, was released back in 2011, leaving a long four-year gap for the musician. During those four years, Bundick worked with other musicians as Toro Y Moi while also dropping an album this past November under Les Sins. After his otherwise occupied time lapse, Bundick ends his break from releases as Toro Y Moi to release What For?
Though Bundick keeps Toro Y Moi’s recognizably charismatic chillwave sound, it’s a bit different from what he was releasing a few years back. What For? features more live percussion and guitars. Live instruments have always been present in Toro Y Moi’s music, but there is now a heavier focus on them over the electronic musical effects, which is quite the opposite of basically all of Toro Y Moi’s previous work.
What For? sounds like an album that a youthful troupe of carefree college-age students would listen to while sitting around a campfire on the beach. Maybe also imagine a cutesy little duo who are obviously crazy for each other, but neither of them know it and it gets all angsty and whatnot. What For? is basically the soundtrack for that movie or TV show premise. A little sappy, yes, but sweet nonetheless.
Toro Y Moi has always had a dreamy vibe to his music, but he also knows how to add the right amount of groove to make it good and funky.
“Empty Nesters,” one of the first singles from the record, is a perfect example of dreamy funk music. The song opens with a guitar jamming out a peppy tune while a bass guitar slaps out a sweet rhythm. The song’s happy-go-lucky attitude is intended for the satirical lyrics about a bored, empty high school or college student. In one line of the song, Bundick bluntly states his satirical intent in the line, “Let’s try to make another hit for the teens,” both referring to the bored students as well as the repetitive pop industry.
Bundick reverts back to a classic Toro Y Moi sound with the song “Lilly.” It opens with warbled synth notes that create a reverberating effect before a guitar begins to strum and Bundick sings. A bass continuously licks under the guitars and the twinkling electronic notes spiral and soar like a spaceship flying away.
The song has both a groovy rhythm as well as a slow, melancholic overtone that will please dedicated Toro Y Moi fans familiar with his older music.
“Yeah Right,” the final track on What For?, is a slow, sad ballad that will have listeners nodding and swaying along to its sensual tones. Its music is a throwback to the '60s psychedelic sound while also including elements of jazz, pop and electronic.
Like much of his work as Toro Y Moi, Bundick reveals his sad boy feelings as he sings to an old love interest he hasn’t seen in a while. He appears jealous of her new friends and questions why she brought them along to hang out, but tries his best to seem nonchalant. Most of the lyrics in the song are his inner monologue during his time seeing this girl after so long. It’s obvious that he’s not over her and never will be, which is hinted in the lyrics, “Never gonna say goodbye, girl,” repeated at the end of the song.
Californian sad boy Toro Y Moi delivers an extra groovy set of tunes with his latest effort. He stays in touch with what his old fans know while also introducing new elements to his music to keep it fresh and alive.
