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Chaz Bear, best known as the genre-defying Toro y Moi, switches his sound up more than he probably switches his socks. The 37-year-old Bay Area artist is a sonic chameleon, able to adjust from slithering synths and coolly applied basslines to guitar riffs and spindly percussion at the drop of a hat\u2014or an album. On his eighth album, Hole Erth<\/em>, Toro y Moi flexes his songcraft over auto-tune and with the help of Death Cab for Cutie\u2019s Ben Gibbard and rapper Don Toliver. Ahead of his set at Life Is Beautiful\u2019s Big Beautiful Block Party (Saturday, September 28, 7:15 p.m.), Bear checked in with the Weekly<\/em>.<\/p>\n You\u2019ve touched on hip-hop and R&B in the past, but Hole Erth<\/em> feels like you fully committed to it. You brought some great rappers in, like Don Toliver and Kenny Mason. What compelled you to go full send on the hip-hop side?<\/strong><\/p>\n It felt like it was the perfect time, in the sense of where I\u2019m at in my life and career. It was something that\u2019s been bubbling for a while, and I felt comfortable literally in my skin. It feels good to feel comfortable with yourself, to make these kinds of songs with confidence.<\/p>\n How do you feel about people referring to your albums as eras?<\/strong><\/p>\n I think that\u2019s a very astute observation. I do like to approach my albums as chapters, or maybe their own individual stories that have chapters within them. I try to make each one its own world. What I enjoyed about albums growing up is each Beach Boys album was its own thing, or each Weezer album was its own thing, especially the Beatles. Each Beatles album was its own thing. So it\u2019s just learning from the greats, really, and pulling from what I think is substantial. I love albums with substance.<\/p>\n I really love \u201cTuesday\u201d and \u201cHOV.\u201d These songs have rap elements but a lot more pop-punk influence. What inspired those tracks?<\/strong><\/p>\n That was such an interesting turn in the process because it was not at all the intention. I wasn\u2019t really trying to go toward this grunge sound at first. It started with all beats and programmed drums. It wasn\u2019t until I did \u201cUndercurrent\u201d with Don Toliver where something clicked. I was like, okay, let me try adding bass and guitars to some of these other tracks that are just electronic at the moment or hip-hop. The BPM sort of synced up with the same BPMs as some of Blink [182\u2019s] songs, or Good Charlotte. Culturally, it feels like that\u2019s where we are. We are in this sort of angsty era, post-covid. Everyone wants to get back to it but also the turmoil of the world has people a little bit on edge. It\u2019s a sound that can disrupt that.<\/p>\n I was surprised with some of the features. I never expected to hear Benjamin Gibbard on a Toro song.<\/strong><\/p>\n A lot of people don\u2019t know that I\u2019m a Death Cab fan. That\u2019s the world I grew up in, through this indie world. To have him sort of sign off on the record as well is a big [check mark] for me.<\/p>\n Why was he the perfect one for that song?<\/strong><\/p>\n When I first made \u201cHollywood,\u201d it reminded me of a Coldplay [song] or something. I was definitely hearing big, anthemic type sounds. When he first turned in something, it was just harmonies on the chorus. I really had to nudge him to get to write a verse. I told him the themes of the song, and how it\u2019s not really a song bashing Hollywood. It\u2019s a cautionary tale. It\u2019s knowing yourself and being comfortable with yourself in tough situations. Jumping into Hollywood isn\u2019t easy. To even touch on that theme felt like a \u2026 growing of sorts for me. I\u2019ve never really touched on celebrity-isms in my music, partially because indie music is kind of distant from that. But I\u2019m noticing that culturally, and because of the internet, it is all blending and merging into one sort of music sphere.<\/p>\n There\u2019s a theme here with you feeling more comfortable in your own skin. Is that something you had to build up to?<\/strong><\/p>\n It took me a long time to realize that … notoriety will come with time. No matter how long you\u2019re doing this, whether it\u2019s good or bad art, it\u2019s going to become notable just because of the amount of time you\u2019re doing it. For the longest time, I thought throughout my career I was avoiding being as known. I was almost like, basking in the normalcy, just appreciating how normal my life still is. But over time, things get a little more intense. It\u2019s not like I dislike any part of what the career brings to my life, but it\u2019s more learning to roll with it. It\u2019s learning to balance that normalcy, that family and domestic life, with the craziness of what this job or industry brings.<\/p>\n Has becoming a father affected how you approach music?<\/strong><\/p>\n Not yet. If anything, I did want to make a record that\u2019s not a sleeper. I wanted to make a record that\u2019s almost like a commercial hit because I want this to sustain, and I want the best for my livelihood and my family\u2019s livelihood. So, I put the folk and psych rock thing aside, just because I know what the kids want. Like you said earlier, I have dabbled in this sound, but I\u2019ve never really capitalized on it. And I think it was just that. I wanted to hold out until this moment, until I felt like it was necessary to rebel in that sense.<\/p>\n Going back to what you said about wanting that slice of normalcy and life growing more intense. It makes me think of artists like Chapell Roan, who have been vocal about how strange that experience is. It\u2019s a weird ascent when you go from being able to walk your dog or get your mail to people suddenly coming up to you.<\/strong><\/p>\n Yeah, I mean just this morning my next-door neighbors were like, \u201cHey, we saw you in The Chronicle<\/em>. \u2026 I didn\u2019t know you were famous.\u201d I was like, \u201cYeah, something like that\u201d (laughs). I really lay low and it\u2019s cool that my neighbors aren\u2019t creeped out by me anymore. For the longest time they were like, \u201cWhat does he do?\u201d All I can do is try to show the humanness and keep fighting for the artist. I think when that fight is set aside or put down, you lose your core audience, which is the artist. We have to make music for ourselves and for other artists to be inspired or pushed by and hopefully it creates a new splash.<\/p>\n Another song I have to give you flowers for is \u201cHeaven.\u201d It\u2019s beautifully arranged. I love the call out to that Broken Social Scene song on the bridge. How did that find its way into the song?<\/strong><\/p>\n I really love that moment too. I\u2019ve been a fan of Broken Social Scene since I was 15-16, dare I say 17\u2014\u201cAnthems for a Seventeen Year-Old Girl.\u201d I bonded with that song early, and the sample idea came up through one of the engineers working on the record. She threw in the actual song and synced up key wise, but then I just decided to re-sing it. I was like, I think this could work, because I\u2019m friends with them. It was such a cool way to collaborate with an indie band. This kind of collaboration, too, is similar to the Ben Gibbard one, where it\u2019s bridging some generational gaps. That\u2019s something I strive to do with all my records.<\/p>\n You also play into nostalgia a lot, especially on \u201cCD-R.\u201d There\u2019s references to Kinkos, there\u2019s references to Blackberries. What\u2019s the story behind that track?<\/strong><\/p>\n Usually with rap, there\u2019s this come-up story. There\u2019s this story of fearless optimism. I just wanted to do my version of that, whether it be street or not street. I wanted to really show what that version of my experience is like. It\u2019s definitely a struggle trying to get your music out there, and I was literally starting in parking lots giving out CDs for free at shows. It\u2019s a hustle, basically. I feel like that\u2019s one of the key pillars of hip-hop is the hustle.<\/p>\n Thinking about that struggle and where you are today after so many years, what is it about making music that keeps it fun for you, that makes you want to keep doing it?<\/strong><\/p>\n I love going into the unknown, not knowing what\u2019s going to come out, not knowing what it\u2019s going to sound like, just going for a deep dive. You never know where you\u2019re going to end up. It\u2019s one of the greatest escapes, other than some sort of drug you could take. You could put your fingers on the piano, and something might come out that could sustain your lifestyle, or make you really happy, or bring tears to your eyes. I think just knowing that I have music basically as a home is what keeps it going.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n