One of the best electronic lo-fi albums came to be after Alan Palomo felt bad for missing a date, where he was planning to take acid with his girlfriend at the time.
His girlfriend had always made fun of him for his band names, especially since he was the one that named them. She told Palamo once that she might start a band to rival him with an equally strange name, such as Neon Indian, according to an interview he did with SPIN.
Palomo was making and playing music with both Ghosthustler and VEGA, and combined what he had learned from his time with them to make an apology song for just his girlfriend to hear.
The apologetic track titled “Should Have Taken Acid With You” was a fun experiment for Palomo, resembling the music he wanted to make that was contrary to what his bands were producing.
The lone recipient of the track got back to him with good feedback and said he had something interesting going on here. This inspired Palomo to start a music project with the moniker Neon Indian.
“Should Have Taken Acid With You” at the time unknowingly marked the first song of an all-time chillwave album, a must listen to called “Psychic Chasms.”
The mini opener “(AM)” perfectly displays what the rest of the album will entail in its 25 second runtime, subtly ramping up the volume like you are on a rollercoaster rising up into the sky. At the end, it drops you as you dive into the groovy song “Deadbeat Summer,” arguably the best track on the album.
What is amazing about the album and Neon Indian in general is how his music captures nostalgia and is danceable. Each song brings you back to a certain time or memory that is repetitively thought of, whether it is fond or sickening to think of.
“Psychic Chasms” begins on the more fond side, with upbeat tracks including “Laughing Gas” and “Terminally Chill” that will have you swaying your head left to right with a smile.
Things start to take a turn with “6669 (I Don’t Know If You Know)” as it gets more serious, being filled with resentment and reflections on how fragile the heart and mind can be.
As a listener, the lyrics can get easily lost in the mix, as the beats are front stage with how majestic and loud they are. They captivate you like a snake listening to a flute in the hands of a charmer.
Once you look over the meaning of the softly spoken lyrics, it adds another layer to how remarkable each track is.
A little more halfway into the album, you’ll reach the drug date apology song that started it all. “Should Have Taken Acid With You” marks the beginning of a trilogy story within the album, including this track and the two after.
“Mind, Drips” covers something relatable, where Palomo had a chance to get someone he always wanted, referencing the missed drug date, and just could not muster the guts to take the chance when he had it– now full of regret and unable to stop thinking about it.
The lyrics “It’s not your fault” are repeated in the song, as he is trying to console himself to make him feel better, but you can still hear how full of sorrow he is.
Now that the door is closed on getting the person he wanted, all he sees around him is reminders of what he could have had– seeing loving couples be together as he strolls by them alone.
“Cryptic message written in the dark
All that haunts me is surely closure
Locking hands floating through the park
They always watch me losing composure”
The title track of “Psychic Chasms” goes into Palomo tripping on acid by himself as he tries to forget all his worries. He attempts to escape to a world where he had never met this person so he can get rid of all the regret he carries, and successfully does.
The blaring lo-fi beat of the track is great and even beautiful. With how loud it is, it swallows you up with power, like the ocean, and forces you to have a moment of peace to yourself. It encourages you to forget your troubles and get lost in the music, just like how he is getting lost happily on his trip.
Then, as he is coming down from his euphoric trip where he had no worries, all his peaceful thoughts go away. His troubles return once he is sober.
“Night drains just to wake
In the end, it’s always fake
And all your thoughts, been left to drown”
“Local Joke” serves as a breath of fresh air from the previous deep-in-thought songs, as this track brings the upbeat chillwave sound similar to “Deadbeat Summer,” but even more vibrant here.
The album takes a final turn at the end with “Ephemeral Artery,” as it serves as a black sheep on the album with how different it is compared to the rest of the songs. It still brings chillwave but in a more hard, EDM way that would be fit for a Boiler Room set.
The cherry on top of this great album is the cover, as a debut lo-fi chillwave record by an artist called Neon Indian fits perfectly with its rough sketch of shapes and bright colors.
If you enjoy “Psychic Chasms,” then I highly recommend you continue to listen and check out the album “Era Extraña.” That album features a whole storyline of dealing with a breakup, with great songs all around and ultimately ends on the track “Suns Irrupt” that is the ultimate release of letting go of the past. I think it is the best song Palomo has produced under Neon Indian.
Palomo said he has no idea why his ex-girlfriend blurted out the name Neon Indian at that moment when they were together. But he has no urge to ever ask why she said that name or if it has any meaning, as he wants to keep it as a cryptic mystery that he and we will never get the answer to.
