Alan Palomo, also known as Neon Indian, is one of the pioneers of the chillwave genre, along with acts such as Washed Out and Toro y Moi. Chillwave usually brings a feeling of nostalgia and relaxation. But on his new album, VEGA INTL. Night School, Palomo delves into the moody, seedy, and synth-filled music of late-night dance clubs and dark city streets. Night School still retains some of Neon Indian’s signature chillwave sound, but it also plays with funk, reggae, and disco, making it danceable for those late hours of the night (or early hours of the morning) when you’re just not ready to come down.
It starts off with “Hit Parade,” a mix of twinkling sounds and fluid beats, before slowing down a little for the first single off the album – “Annie.” Easily one of the catchiest songs on the album, the song tells the story of a man wandering the city at night looking for a girl who left the club he’d been dancing in. You’ll be singing “answering machine” for the rest of the year. This mood of being lost late at night in the big city sets the tone for the rest of the album.
The next song, “Street Level,” is a particular highlight, capturing that aesthetic in the span of four minutes. Palomo croons the lines “Street level line of sight/Just trying to survive the night,” enticing the listener to stick through the rest of the album to see if this character does indeed survive. The second single off the album, “Slumlord,” furthers the neon-lit mood with lines like “Cause it’s easy to be the miser when no one’s the wiser/Easy to shake it out/Easy to bring the green.” Towards the end of the album, Palomo gets intimate and personal with “Techno Clique.” Reminiscent of Jamie xx’s “Loud Places” from earlier this year, the song is about finding someone to dance the night away with, free of worry. It’s a perfect song to start closing down the album and the night.
In an interview with Diffuser, Palomo described the album as a way of conveying what he learned about life while wandering the streets at night. “Most of what I’ve learned about human nature in my twenties has happened after dark,” Palomo said. “People are just kind of more honest then. More deliberate. I like to call the places I go to Night Schools.” This is evident in Night School. Palomo ties all the samples, beats, synths, and lyrics into a fantastic curriculum of nightlife. It’s like a hazy fever dream you stumble into but you don’t want to leave because of the funky beats and bright neon signs that surround you.