REVIEWSSmall Black, ‘Moon Killer’

7

• SPIN Rating:7 of 10

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Release Date: November 11, 2011
Label: Self-released

When chillwave crested, this Long Island foursome seemed fairly likely to sink. Their sound was more washed-out than Washed Out -- a pleasantly textured melodic sigh from Bummer Beach -- but this free mixtape is more killer than chiller. Taking rap's cue, the band samples Pere Ubu, Nas, Drake, and the Carpenters, folding old beats and warped hooks into a roiling stew of booming bass, fuzzed guitar, and gushing synths. Highlights include singer Josh Kolenik swooning over Nicki Minaj and Das Racist's Heems freestyling over the slow-rolling goop of "Two Rivers."