Washed Out - Eyes Be Closed

Crashing in with soft echoing synths, ‘Eyes Be Closed’ gently sets off into the same muffled, faux-80s electro nostalgia familiar to fans of ‘Life Of Leisure’. Except this time it feels different - richer, more luscious.

A slow drumbeat heralds in dreamy hooks and the mellow drone of Ernest Greene’s vocal, gradually building up into a wonderfully engrossing crescendo pulling everything together in a golden splash of far out, mild euphoria. It manages to seem epic and chilled out all at once, and while maybe not dissimilar to his debut material, is rescued from what could verge on dull by the richness of the song’s production and vast sound.

It’s the first single and opening track off upcoming album ‘Within & Without’, and since Greene’s first release back in 2009 he’s not alone in having a sophomore. Other fuzzy bedroom producers lumped into the same genre such as Toro Y Moi and Memory Tapes have returned to show how, or if, they’ve progressed.

The chillwave may have lessened to a more manageable ripple in the ocean, but a listen of ‘Eyes Be Closed’ shows there’s still some pace left in it yet.