Toro y Moi – “Causers of This”
Carpack Records
-out Feb 2
2.5 / 5
The debut full-length album from Columbia, SC based Toro y Moi takes a more pop-oriented, Animal Collective flavor on electronica. The first few opening tracks, up to and including “Imprint After,” are interesting pastiches of electronic work, falsetto, and upbeat rhythms; while they don’t exactly make you want to get up and groove them hard, they still satisfy in a laid-back sort of way. At “Lissoms” and “False Shadow,” however, is where the spell seems to break: constant reverse and stop effects drown out the natural music that should flow from these songs. These effects don’t seem to complement, but rather detract from what is going on; to compare to the masters of multiple layered effects, Animal Collective, what is lacking here is a solid cohesion and a purpose to these effects, and the result is similar to New England stop-and-go traffic. While props should be given for the attempt from the critical point of view, a careful buyer may find these latter tracks to be a collective of somewhat frustrating studio effects. A good start, but a lackluster finish; pass.
Listen to “Talamak”: www.myspace.com/453173424