We met at a hot chip afterparty during acl weekend end 2008. The wind was cool, and the throng of party-goers around us were oblivious to the star power that Alan Palomo and Danny Carissimi possessed, or would soon possess.
The former was the frontman for Denton’s Ghosthustler, a blog curiosity that, unfortunately, didn’t have the staying power it deserved. It wasn’t that Ghosthustler’s music wasn’t good — it was infectious and fun, and it was the precursor of all of Palomo’s future projects — we just weren’t ready for it. Nobody was into soft, fuzzy electronic beats quite yet (bands like MGMT and Passion Pit were still unknown at the time), and people were perpetually searching for the next big-bass banger (think Justice, MSTRKRFT, or anything Busy P has put out).
But, Palomo was embarking on a new venture — a solo project called VEGA. This new direction would allow him to experiment with sounds he found fascinating — trippy Italodisco arpeggios, a renewed emphasis on vocal acrobatics and soaring sonic artistry.
And while VEGA experienced some unexpected success — they opened up for Crystal Castles early this year and recently came off tour — Palomo never thought that a simple, curiously secretive side project, Neon Indian, would be his claim to fame.
What started off as a few mysterious tracks that first got exposure on blogs like Gorilla vs. Bear morphed into a full-on indie juggernaut: specifically, Psychic Chasms, Neon Indian’s debut, which was released this Tuesday to much acclaim. Pitchfork gave the album the highly esteemed “Best New Music” label, along with an 8.6 rating, and Charles Gibson on ABC News introduced a Psychic Chasms album review. But most importantly, this was the sound that defined summer 2009: the sound of warped cassette noise, melted synths over chilled-out drum work, hazy and washed-out like 8-track ectoplasm: the kind of summer defined by Super 8 recordings, 1970s horror movies and the rise of hypnagogic pop songs played over tinny radio speakers.
This is Neon Indian.
Danny Carissimi, who has managed Palomo’s success in Neon Indian and VEGA in years past, is hard at work, more so than ever before.
“Neon Indian was weird, because we didn’t expect it to get popular so quickly,” Carissimi said. “We signed with a small label called Lefse, and I wanted it to be a stepping stone for us. We’ve been waiting awhile to see what options are available to us — but it’s a patience thing. Pedro Winter [Busy P] once told me the one thing I need to do is be really patient. He said ‘I know a lot of people are bothering you right now, but this is my piece of advice,’ and he looked at me with the utmost sincerity and said, ‘Follow your heart.’”
And Carissimi’s patience paid off.
“What’s weird is that I got a big offer for Neon Indian from a label, but I was sitting there, watching ‘District 9’ with this girl and I almost had a panic attack; I was just thinking about it, something I’ve always wanted, but to see that amount of money and to know that people are into it, and that I’m in the driver’s seat for this — it’s overwhelming,” Carissimi said. “I hear people talking about success and how it would freak them out, but I would always think, ‘Fuck that, why would you think that?’ But now I’m just starting to realize how insanely overwhelming it is.”
As a UT student, Carissimi is trying to balance the wealth of work that comes with being a senior at a top-tier university while still managing one of the hottest acts in the world.
“I’m in my last semester here, and it’s been difficult. Summer, especially,” Carissimi said.
“I have a pretty set system, but unfortunately it’s impossible for me to be as diligent as I once was. I have a policy, for example, where I never miss a phone call, so sometimes I have to step out of class.”
Neon Indian is at the forefront in a new movement of ramshackle, glimmering, lo-fi pop, of which bands like Washed Out and Toro y Moi have championed in the last few months.
“I think it’s been around for a short while, artists like Ariel Pink making pop music that wasn’t necessarily accessible all the time,” Carissimi said. “I think that people were listening to bangers from ‘05 where there was no songwriting involved, whereas bands like Neon Indian are making albums as a sort of diary. The timing was perfect, and I think Neon Indian is the truest artistic expression of Alan. The album just came out really effortlessly, as the synthesis of multiple projects that he’s been doing.”
It’s fortunate that Carissimi has been faithful to Palomo’s projects the last few years. It’s that kind of loyalty that helped propel Neon Indian to new heights.
Whereas his previous projects focused on making polished dance jams (VEGA’s “No Reason”, for example), Palomo experimented on Neon Indian with wavy melodies and glowing, lo-fidelity beats.
At an IHEARTCOMIX afterparty on the Lamar Pedestrian Bridge two weekends ago, Palomo, fresh off a recent tour, was walking around, just as he had been a year ago at the Hot Chip afterparty. Greg Gillis of Girl Talk was nearby, talking to a host of his fans. It was easy for fans to spot Gillis, bright blue eyes and long hair tucked under a Philadelphia cap.
Palomo, who’s most-used press photo is of him hiding his face behind a synthesizer, was just as popular with the crowd. And though he just came off a tour from Europe and has met and performed for countless fans, the man I’ve only met a few times in real life still recognized me. It’s the same kind of loyalty to early bird adopters that Carissimi showed me when I came across him last semester, wearing shades and traversing campus with a smile across his face.
And this is why Neon Indian will continue to see success.
Neon Indian’s debut album, Psychic Chasms, is available on iTunes now. Catch Neon Indian and VEGA at Fun Fun Fun Fest, Nov. 7-8.
