The Way That It Was, which will be released on Little Record Company on August 12th, 2008, sees Pierre transition seamlessly into the role of frontman after years on the road and in the studio with his Rilo Kiley bandmates. As one of the band's co-founders, Pierre has been front and center as they have progressed from local fan-favorite to celebrated critical success, with their latest album Under the Blacklight landing at #8 on Rolling Stone's list of the Top 50 albums of 2007 and #10 on Blender's Best Albums of 2007.

For his solo debut, Pierre decided to eschew the lush powerpop and smooth beats of the band's current stylings in favor of creating an intimate collection of songs that feed from the singer songwriter tradition of classic folk-rockers like Harry Nilsson. However, the influences of his musical past can be heard in the strong melodic structures and pop sensibilities that permeate the album.

Written over the past five years, The Way That It Was was penned entirely by Pierre and took shape in various locations, including Pierre's home and the Kingsize Studios in Eagle Rock. Pierre plays most or all of the instrumentation on much of the album, which also features notable collaborations with, among others, co-producer Dave Trumfio (Built To Spill, Wilco, Grandaddy) and Rilo Kiley bandmates Jenny Lewis, Blake Sennett and Jason Boesel.

Listeners will recognize the album's seemingly familiar blend of classic pop, rock and folk but will quickly find it to be unlike anything they've heard before. Tracks like album openers "Shame On Love" and "I'll Be Around" may be written with the unabashed honesty of a late-night journal entry, but Pierre's musings on the joys, frustrations and commitments of love feel as if they could have been taken from your very own diary. There is a universality in the way that Pierre wraps his rich, mellow voice around blasts of cheerful horns as he ponders the limitations of self reflection in "That's The Way That It Was," and the soft lullaby of "Sophia's Song," written for Pierre's daughter, will transport even the most jaded listener back to the comforting embrace of adoring parents. The album closes out with a chorus of Pierre's family and friends joining him in singing the uplifting mantras of "Not How I Believe." Go ahead, sing along – these are the times to share the memories of the way that it was.