Washed Out – Paracosm

A paracosm is a psychological term for a spectacularly detailed imaginary world – think Tolkien’s Middle Earth or Westeros in George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire books. This, the second record record from Georgia-based producer Ernest Greene under the Washed Out banner, is his attempt to create the aural equivalent, but instead of dwarves and elves think lazy beats, languid vocals and samples which sound culled from some heavenly all-night summer party. 

Beneath the electronica wooziness, Don’t Give Up hides a great chorus and an infectious drive; Weightless makes you feel like you’re exactly that, lush and dreamy; while closer All Over Now could soundtrack the scene in a hundred eighties movies where the hero rides across a strange dreamscape. Greene reportedly used more than 50 different instruments to bolster his computer and synths, and one listen is enough to believe it; the sound is so textured you could dive right in and fall without ever reaching the bottom. [PJ Meiklem]