Hole Erth

On Chaz Bear’s eighth studio album under the Toro y Moi moniker, he returns to his roots. No, not the chillwave roots he became celebrated for in the late 2000s and early 2010s with initial singles and *Causers of This*, but his actual roots as a fan of pop punk, alternative, and rap music. “Hollywood,” which begins with a melodic bassline that wouldn’t sound out of place on an early Green Day record, features Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard and finds Bear waxing somewhat nostalgically about his early days as Toro y Moi. “Poor navigation, who am I to blame?/No one even calls me by my real name,” he sings. “Heaven,” which features BROCKHAMPTON alumni Kevin Abstract and Lev, begins with a campfire-worthy acoustic guitar riff and layered vocals from Bear and his guests. The slow-burning alt-R&B jam finds Toro y Moi showcasing the natural beauty of his voice and imploring the song’s subject to find the joy he finds throughout the album: “Baby, let it go/Let it go.”

Chaz Bear has been on the periphery of emo-rap since 24kGoldn was in kindergarten. But the crowded, blown-out Hole Erth struggles to sound like anything but an imitation.

Toro y Moi's eighth studio album, 'Hole Erth,' sounds more like a fresh, new reinvention of millennial treasures than it does a time capsule.

The latest offering from Toro y Moi ‘Hole Erth’ prides itself on its boldness. Stepping headfirst into the synth-littered world of rock, bedroom rap and