ARTIST...: Washed Out
TITLE....: Purple Noon
YEAR.....: 2020
LABEL....: Sub Pop
CAT.NO...: SP1365
GENRE....: Electronic
TIME.....: 42:04
SIZE.....: 76.81 MB
QUALITY..: 255kbps/48.0kHz/Joint Stereo
ENCODER..: LAME
SOURCE...: Vinyl
RLS.DATE.: 2020/08/13
WEBSITE..: https://www.discogs.com/release/15730599
TRACKLIST
A1) (04:10) Too Late
A2) (04:07) Face Up
A3) (04:14) Time to Walk Away
A4) (03:19) Paralyzed
A5) (04:22) Reckless Desires
B1) (04:09) Game of Chance
B2) (03:50) Leave You Behind
B3) (05:19) Don't Go
B4) (03:26) Hide
B5) (05:08) Haunt
Washed Out is Atlanta-based producer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Ernest Greene.
Over the course of three uniquely enchanting, critically-lauded albums and an EP, the
music he makes has proved both transportive and visual, each new effort inviting
listeners into immersive, self-contained universes. With Purple Noon, his fourth
album, and return to Sub Pop, he delivers the most accessible Washed Out creation to
date.
Life of Leisure, the first Washed Out EP, set the bar for the Chillwave era,
shimmering in a warm haze of off-the-cuff Polaroids and pre-IG filters. Within and
Without, his full-length debut on Sub Pop, found Washed OutÆs sound morphing into
nocturnal, icy synth-pop and embraced provocative imagery. Paracosm is GreeneÆs take
on psychedelia, with a full live band and kaleidoscopic light show, and saw him
playing to the largest audiences of his career. The sample-heavy Mister Mellow
delivered a 360 audio/visual experience, with cut-n-paste and hand-drawn animation to
match the hip hop influences throughout the album. With each release, Greene has
approached his evolving project with meticulous detail and a steadfast vision.
For Purple Noon, Greene again wrote, recorded, and produced the entirety of the
album, with mixing handled by frequent collaborator Ben H. Allen (Paracosm, Within
and Without). Production of the album followed a brief stint of writing for other
artists (most notably with Sudan Archives on her debut Athena) which enabled Greene
to explore genres like R&B and modern pop for the first time. These brighter, more
robust sounds made their way into the songs of Purple Noon and mark a new chapter in
GreeneÆs growth both as a producer and songwriter. The vocals are front and center,
tempos are slower, beats bolder, and overall, a more comprehensive depth of dynamics
that has yet to be heard on a Washed Out record. One can hear the luxuriousness of
Sade, the sonic bombast of Phil Collins, and the lush atmosphere of the great
Balearic beat classics.
The coastlines of the Mediterranean inspire Purple Noon, and Greene pays tribute to
the regionÆs distinct island culture û with all of its rugged elegance and old-world
charm û and uses it as a backdrop to tell the albumÆs stories of passion, love, and
loss (Purple NoonÆs title comes from the 1960 film directed by Rene Clement, which is
based on the novel ôThe Talented Mister Ripleyö by Patricia Highsmith). Much like the
romantic Hollywood epics, the melodrama throughout is strong û a serendipitous first
meeting in ôToo Lateö; the passionate love affair in ôParalyzedö; the disintegration
of a relationship in ôTime to Walk Awayö; the reunion with a lost love in ôGame of
Chance.ö Each Washed Out release has been rooted in a form of escapism, but coupled
with this new layer of emotional intensity, Purple Noon takes Washed OutÆs music to
dazzling new heights.
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