REVIEW: Toro y Moi @ House of Blues 11/6
By Sarah Burnick
The initial beats had the audience’s bodies grooving, and with each song an entirely new mood. Toro y Moi brought his experimental chillwave to Boston’s House of Blues, Wednesday November 6, taking complete control of the vibe and emotions of the crowd while playing a range of his border-breaking collection.
Before Chaz Bundick even came onto the brilliantly lit stage – the vibrant colors surrounding the stage complementing his guitar-heavy sound and R&B influence – up-and-coming rapper Channel Tres, a previous collaborator on songs with Tyler the Creator and JPEGMAFIA, set the initial mood. The Compton, California native brought his classic Detroit-house-meets-L.A.-rap dance set to Boston, controlling the crowd’s movements with hits “Black Moses” and “Glide.” Accompanied by two dancers, the three men brought sexy back with their movements and Tres’ deep, Barry White-esque voice. Every song brought on a new excitement, warming up the crowd for Toro y Moi unlike any other opener experienced before. Ranging from the poetic “Brilliant N****” to the fresh dance beats of “Topdown” that had the whole crowd’s energy pumping, Channel Tres truly brought the energy of a headliner before Bundick had even made an appearance. Tres and Bundick’s collaborations like “Who Am I? (Channel Tres Remix)” suggests further partnership of the groundbreaking artists, one that should excite the EDM and rap crowd.
Toro y Moi took the stage later in the evening, beginning his set with “3-28-18b” from his most recent release Soul Trash, and “Windows” from the 2017 Boo Boo album. With the adrenaline high and the crowd ecstatic for Bundick to take the stage, he demonstrated his mesmorizing ability to set the mood of a sold out venue, even one as spacious as the House of Blues. Taking it down a notch from Channel Tres’ funky set, Toro brings the crowd on a ride of his experimental, synth heavy sound, setting a vibe that could only be described as “the chillest” by surrounding concert-goers.
Diving into his 2019 album Outer Peace with “New House,” Bundick continued to enthrall the crowd, his music casting a spell making it impossible not to move along to the techno beats and favorites “Girl Like You” and “Ordinary Pleasure,” setting off the dance party for the rest of the night. Following with “Laws of the Universe,” Bundick encouraged the crowd to celebrate every part of ourselves, as our failures make us stronger, weirder, and more fun at parties like the one he created at House of Blues.
The influences behind each song shone, paying homage to his home in the Bay Area, California with “Monte Carlo” and to his genre-bending sound that has fluctuated and matured over his years as an artist with “Grown Up Calls” from his 2013 LP Anything in Return.
At this point in the show, after grooving to the first half of his set, the audience broke into song celebrating Bundick’s birthday which was the day after, making him laugh and humanizing the beat-maker, whose sounds truly enchanted those listening, as he took a step away from his desk of synths, mixers, and keyboard. Spreading his love and appreciation to the crowd between songs connected the musician to his adoring fans before him, his voice and music setting a Wednesday mood unlike any other, one of passion for the music he was playing, and the love and energy it brings to those who have fallen head over heels for Toro’s lo-fi, disco influenced sound.
Bundick left nothing out of his set, encompassing who he is as an artist and his journey from bedroom dream pop to his trademark ambient R&B chillwave sound. Toro brought older songs into a new light, with “Lilly” and even “New Beat” from his second release in 2011. The show tied together Toro’s wide range of music that reflected his life experiences over the past 20 years, starting small in his South Carolina bedroom in 2001. Featuring the old and new, tying the whole show together with hits “Rose Quartz” and “Freelance,” truly showcased who Toro y Moi is, was, and will be as an artist as his potential for greatness as one of the leading house artists of our generation has already shown through and will continue to with his future projects.