Album Review: Toro Y Moi Shows The Layers Of Love In “Boo Boo”
There is a dreamy vibe to Toro Y Moi’s Boo Boo, which befits his views on love. From space-age funk to Motown pop-soul, his previous albums have been boisterous testaments to this talent and “love for love”, but, in Boo Boo, he blends his music diversity to create a sound that is as unpredictable as the virtue, itself. Thus, Boo Boo offers a version of Toro Y Moi that is more bare and precise in his woes / whims of the heart.
Sonically, Boo Boo seduces with its ability to go from dance-fest to a dower, but dazzling note on love. More than ever, Toro Y Moi uses the magic of digital pop to creates a sound that can excite listeners to move like it is a French discotheque (“No Show”), or “chillax” as if the disco has been closed and all that is left is the memories of those you danced with (‘Labyrinth”). It seems befitting that time has made this creative more sporadic, but also more willing to play with serener melodies. As we grow older, we do have the tendency to grow quieter and more pensive on the things that move us spiritually forward and backward. While, Toro Y Moi is certainly more thoughtful in how he paces and spaces his melodies, he cannot get too still in how love makes him dance. Tracks such as “You And I”, “Mona Lisa”, and “Don’t Try” make you want to wear bright colors and high-kicks as synths bop and burrow through rhythms. These tracks represent what I love most about Boo Boo, which is its plays on 80’s electro instrumentals that make even heartbreak sound like a fun trip to the mall. Yet, Toro Y Moi (real name: Chaz Bear) uses his voice to slow and seduce in how he wants “the girl”, but does not know if she is “the one”. In songs, “Girl Like You”, “Mirage”, and “Inside My Head” his voice scintillates with a sweetness that makes even his rejections regal. Frankly, the man knows how to drop a note and beat with an effortlessness that reflects how quickly we gain a crush on someone. Sometimes, a glance can instantly ignite a million wedding fantasies, and being older does not stop that, but it does make you think upon its inspiration.
If when we are young, love hits us like “nothing” then as we grow older it strikes us with an equal lack of consent. The difference is we have more mindfulness to think about what motivates us to “dive in” to relationships without seeing if there is a pool before us. “From Windows” to “Pavement”, Toro Y Moi has no problem exchanging a hypnotic bounce for a more mystical chord that elaborates he is not embracing love with youthful blindness anymore. Although he still does with a childlike glee, the dizziness and dazzle of this emotion can be heard in his beats and maturer lyricism. For More Information On Toro Y Moi And To Buy Boo Boo On July 7 Click Here.
