Washed Out is Atlanta-based producer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Ernest Greene. Over the course of four 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.
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 pre-IG filters. Within and Without, his full-length debut on Sub Pop, found Washed Out’s sound morphing into nocturnal, icy synth-pop and embraced provocative imagery. Paracosm is Greene’s 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. With Purple Noon, his fourth album, and return to Sub Pop, he delivers the most accessible Washed Out creation to date.
Brijean
Since their debut as Brijean, the project of percussionist/singer-songwriter Brijean Murphy (the percussive
heartbeat for live bands like Mitski, Poolside, and Toro y Moi) and multi-instrumentalist/producer Doug
Stuart has moved with ingenuity, fusing psych-pop abstraction with dancefloor sensibilities. Through the
body and mind, rhythm and lyricism, they make sense of the worlds around and within; 2021’s Feelings
celebrated self-reflection; 2022’s Angelo processed loss, coinciding with the duo’s first headlining tour,
which doubled down on the material’s desire to move. Now, across the playful expanse of Macro, arriving
in 2024 on Ghostly International, Brijean engages different sides of themselves, the paradox of being
alive.
Murphy, an accomplished DJ, session and live player in Oakland’s diverse music scene has emerged as
one of indie’s most in-demand percussionists. In 2018, she began recording songs with multi-
instrumentalist and producer Stuart, who shares a background in jazz and pop in bands such as Bells
Atlas, Meernaa, and Luke Temple. Eventually dubbed Brijean, the project grew out of marathon sessions
at their intimate home-studio. Their first effort, Walkie Talkie (released by Native Cat Recordings in 2019),
found Murphy taking the mic for the first time to deliver dreamy dance tracks that felt home-cooked and
effortlessly chic. Her layered percussion and hypnotic, expressive vocals coupled with Stuart’s production
and harmonic palette evoked shades of disco, ‘90s house, and a sly pop sensibility. ”A smooth,
sumptuous, and soulful record,” said Bandcamp, who helped propel the group’s early following.
Murphy’s musical talents are family heirlooms: her father, percussionist and engineer Patrick Murphy,
taught Brijean her first patterns on a pair of congas that she inherited from the late Trinidadian steel drum
legend Vince Charles (of Neil Diamond). Growing up in LA’s Glassell Park, Murphy was raised by a cadre
of honorary aunts and uncles – a deep bench of jazz, Latin and soul musicians in their own rites. This
meant she grew up regaled by musical lore – larger-than-life tales of jazz luminaries, psychedelic trips
and obscure cultural enclaves – sampling some of those family stories and weaving them into her work.
Growing up outside of Chicago, Stuart found his way into jazz clubs and festivals as a teenager,
frequently going to hear Jeff Parker, Fred Anderson, and other members of the AACM. While attending
the University of Michigan, he studied under Detroit jazz royalty, Robert Hurst and Geri Allen. After
college, Stuart became intrigued by the music of J Dilla and Moodymann, and began learning production
and exploring the connections between jazz, house, and hip-hop.