Ernest Greene has traversed a similar trajectory to that of fellow South Carolinian Chaz Bundick aka Toro Y Moi, who rose to prominence around the same time. Both have amassed a rich discography, confidently sticking to what they do best: free-floating soulful vocals, ethereal textures and sophisticated grooves. After a couple of full-lengths on Sub Pop, Greene steps out on longtime Lab favorite Stones Throw Records for his latest full-length as Washed Out. At first, hearing they had signed to Stones Throw was a bit disorienting, but listening to Ernest Greene’s heady and arboreal downtempo beats on Mister Mellow recalls some of our favorite textures from the MoWax label, which isn’t too far off. Also keep in mind, the label has been throwing curveballs at us for years, turning us onto Baron Zen, Nite Jewel, James Pants and a dude called Dam-Funk along the way. Mister Mellow is mostly comprised of dense instrumentation and eerie sample collages (“Time Off”), icy downtempo (“I’ve Been Daydreaming My Entire Life”), even classic house vibes (“Get Lost”), but it’s clear throughout that this is the same songwriter responsible for 2009’s massive “Feel It All Around.” Other tracks to check out: “Burn Out Blues,” “Million Miles Away.” Yellow vinyl pressing with printed inner sleeve and code for digital download.

• yellow colored vinyl pressing
• printed inner sleeve
• digital download included
• music label: Stones Throw 2017

reviewed by mayor of hounslow 08/2017