Stay Lost

Album review

Stay Lost is White Violet's second album, and while it expands things just a bit on the first, 2012's Hiding, Mingling, it still works out of the same template of wistfully melodic and melancholic bedroom dream pop, seemingly at times as weightless and gently enveloping as fog. White Violet is built around the vision, songs, singing, and guitar playing of frontman Nate Nelson, and his view of things is a bit like that of a late-night chillout version of Paul Simon, being literate, self-examining, and gentle as slipping into a dream of leaves falling. No, Stay Lost is definitely not an album one would toss on at a dance party, but it might be a good one to toss on while cleaning up the place the next morning. Its fluid, melancholic pacing has just enough energy and groove to go with a first cup of coffee, but beware, Stay Lost doesn't ever really hit second gear, mostly because it doesn't intend to. This is neo-dream pop, plain and simple, music made for soothingly sad dreaming, wishing, and hoping. It goes down easy, light as sleep dust. The winsome opener, "Weighs," finds Nelson musing on what weighs down on him, while "Autumn Grove" is moody, easy-shaking late-night groove-pop. The most upbeat thing here, "Fernandina," an account of a 24-hour love story, sounds like elegant and melodic garage rock done after a bottle or two of cough syrup, and it's gorgeous at points. The closer, "Thankfully," is a blue-collar look at beloved places and towns wrapped up in waves of dream pop atmospherics. Gentle and easy as honey at midnight, the general mood of Stay Lost is consistently one of wishing and yearning, and it all washes over the listener like moonlight falling on a pillow.

© Steve Leggett /TiVo