Philadelphia’s mysterious Golden Ages has released three singles from the forthcoming Tradition LP which is scheduled for a Spring 2010 release, and they are all highly recommended downloads for fans of Animal Collective, Panda Bear, and chillwave/glo-fi. The first single, “Everything Will Be Alright,” was used as the cornerstone track for the Musical Pairings’ chillwave mix, and was chosen for that spot because it reflected the very outer edges of the burgeoning genre. Indeed, Golden Ages isn’t really a chillwave artist at all, but instead represents that missing link between the artists that influenced the birth of chillwave (especially Panda Bear/Animal Collective) and the honest-to-god chillwave artists like Neon Indian, MillionYoung, and Memory Tapes. The second single, “Be Cool,” is hypnotic and cacophonous, hazily tumbling forward through a shimmering melody. The rest of the album is every bit as enjoyable as those two tracks, and the album really feels complete as a single listening experience. Indeed, Tradition is an excellent collection of fuzzy slices of blown-out, bedroom, lo-fi pop that is equal parts spacey and cerebral, glimmering and evocative.
Golden Ages – Be Cool
Golden Ages – Everything Will Be Alright (from the chillwave mix)
Golden Ages – Right Season (via Deerhaus)
