Washed Out at the El Rey Theatre (Aeri Koo/Neon Tommy).

Washed Out played another sold out show yesterday night at the El Rey Theatre, succeeding his show at The Fox Theater in Pomona the night before.

Ernest Greene, commonly known as Washed Out, lured us into a soothing trance with his mystical tunes and tender charm. As a triple threat of singer, songwriter, and record producer, the Georgia native never intended on being an artist.

Lucky for us, he was unable to find a librarian job as a college graduate and started producing music in his own bedroom.

As a die-hard "Portlandia" fan, I discovered Washed Out through his debut song "Feel It All Around," which is featured as the theme song for the IFC series. Since then, he's gained wide popularity for his two synthpop albums "Within and Without" and "Paracosm."

A master of the chillwave movement, Washed Out opened with "Entrance," which was the perfect anticipative preview of the dreamy tunes we were about to experience for the next hour. 

Listening to his music gives you a strong internal wave of optimism, as if you're entering a state of utopia. Unfortunately, some critics argue that his music is a steady progression to putting one to sleep.

However, it's not merely about what the beats sound like through your speakers, but more about the colorful emotions one evokes when listening to "Paracosm" (hence, the album cover).

It's not until you see Greene play live that you witness a different perspective and understand his musical aesthetic. As a multi-instrumentalist, he thoughtfully crafted a warm dreamscape for the El Rey theater through his guitars (classical and bass), synthesizer, tambourine, and rattle - mastering each instrument as he carefully chose one to accommodate his singing.

In addition, the stage embodied a psychedelic fantasy, with cool colors and romantic lights that coincided with the beats of the music. At times the lights would dim the entire stage, and all that was visible was fading light and the silhouette of Greene's curly hair.

Tracks like "New Theory" and "Feel It All Around" got the crowd dancing, while others like "You and I," "Far Away," and "Falling Back" got our bodies to unwind and our minds to daydream.

For his encore, he turned our attention to a number of cameramen blending in with the audience, who were shooting scenes of the show for his upcoming music video, "Weightless." Rather than going straight for one last performance, he guided us with instructions to be included in the music video. 

It took a few tries - some audience memberswere being uncooperative due to overexcitement - but after the final take he ended the night performing the track live for his very first time.

Washed Out is performing today at The Fillmore in San Francisco, but don't worry - for those who missed him the last few times, he'll be at this year's Coachella playing on both Saturday nights.

Read more of NT's show reviews here.

Reach Staff Reporter Aeri Koo here.