Most artists endeavor to release albums that push the envelope or break new ground. Musicians always seem to be striving for their own respective "Sgt. Peppers." Such is not the case with Poolside, a Los Angeles based duo who came together to record their first LP, Pacific Standard Time, this summer. The two partners came together, self-reportedly while drunk, to release a breezy summer album that does nothing but go along with a lazy Los Angeles afternoon.
Many critics would probably pan this album as an unimpressive example of the already over saturated chillwave genre. To those critics defense, Pacific Standard Time's dancey synth beats, and simple vocals caked effects, is nothing that has never been done. The formula is all pretty standard. Chastising a chillwave band for oversimplifying, however, shows a definite misunderstanding of the goal of the genre, and especially Poolside. These guys are not Pink Floyd; the listener does not crawl inside the structure of the album and slowly dissect it. Rather, Pacific Standard Time is an accompaniment to another activity. It is the background soundtrack of whatever setting and proceeding the listener to which the listener is doing, be it cleaning the house, or relaxing on a Los Angeles beach. The languid disco beats are damn good, and the entire album is driving and engaging. The easy mood of Pacific Standard Time makes the album approachable to all listeners.
After all is said and done, Poolside is a lazy L.A. duo who know their strengths and limitations. Instead of reaching for a level they cannot possibly achieve, the band sticks to what they know: head-bobbing, languid, tunes about girls and sunsets. While the album itself may not be genius, the thematics of Pacific Standard Time are brilliant, as the band clearly achieved what it set out to.
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