Anyone who's been predicting Rilo Kiley's demise
has a few logs to throw onto the fire, not the least of which is the number of
side and solo projects that the four members have tended to over the years. (If
they're wondering why their day job isn't as commercially popular as it should
be, perhaps they should note how many side projects Coldplay has distracted
itself with.) Add to the list Pierre de Reeder's The Way That It Was, a pleasant-enough solo
debut that finds Rilo's bassist traveling down a timeless singer-songwriter
path far removed from the pop-and-rock hopscotch found on last year's excellent Under The Blacklight. De Reeder's bandmates are among those who help flesh things
out, and some moments seem directly influenced by his main gig, but overall, The
Way That It Was
sounds like it was made by a guy with a specific vision and some things to get
off his chest. There's a maturity here that can come off as either sage or
snoozy, depending on how you feel about songs called "Shame On Love" and "This
Foolish Heart," a guy sharing an open letter to his daughter, and lyrics like "Used
to be a boy, but where is he now? I've grown up somehow." Sadly, in the world
of indie rock, older and wiser rarely adds up to memorable.