Any fears No Joy were veering away from their noisy, abrasive roots on their new LP ‘Wait To Pleasure’ are dispelled right from the opener ‘E’. The “in your face” attitude of 2010’s ‘Ghost Blonde’ is still evident. I must admit, this is a much stronger record than I expected it to be. The Montreal band have grown into themselves and have produced a diverse offering; from 90s rockers a la Lush in ‘Prodigy’, to the dreamy ‘Lunar Phobia’ and the shogazey ‘Slug Night’. It’s inaccurate to lump No Joy in the shoegaze bag but nonetheless those influences [...]
This summer Surfing will release a 7inch with the single ‘Hollow Sparrow’. The Virginia-based four piece have made a promising debut after paying their dues playing stages across the East Coast. Surfing – ‘Hollow Sparrow’ Visit Surfing online @ www.surf1ng.com [...]
Dead Leaf Echo are busy touring the USA on the back of their debut album 'Thought And Language' ( available now through Neon Sigh ). The New York-based trio have toured alongside Chapterhouse, The Psychedelic Furs, Ulrich Schnuass, A Place To Bury Strangers and Ringo Deathstarr among others and recently worked with John Fryer (Cocteau Twins, NIN) to mix the album. Guitarist and singer LG has taken a moment to answer a few questions about the new album, the tour and that special spot on the Beautiful Noise 20th Anniversary stage... [...]
Last month we got our first dose of Skinny Dream with their single ‘ Crush ’, now the British shoegazers have followed it up with ‘ Alloa ’. This time the lads get a little more dreamy – keep an ear out for their debut EP ‘Crushing’ expected next month. Skinny Dream - 'Alloa' [...]
The VPME The Kaleidoscopes are from Birmingham (UK) and they produce the sort blissed out dream pop that will doubtless garner countless My Bloody Valentine comparisons. Yet it's an association you feel the band can live with, mixing as they do, bleached out ethereal droning harmonies with explosive incendiary guitar licks. After releasing a collection of demos it seems The Kaleidoscopes were somewhat surprised that this track 'Coming Up' turned out to be the something of a musical lightning rod. Apparently it's the one track on their demo EP that spent the [...]
Since the reincarnation of the Soviet Union into what is now various satellite countries, cultural transformations have taken place within these countries and that can’t but affect the music that is taking root there. After a little research and lots of Soundclouding, I found a ton of good music from that part of the world, so here is your introductory peek through this sonic window into the sonic ex-USSR. To be continued… Ummagma – BFD [...]
Lad mig præsentere et band med et navn, jeg tror må være det længste endnu på Musik Mig Blidt: We Are The Way For The Cosmos To Know Itself. Lige en advarsel her fra starten. WATWFTCTKIS består af tre medlemmer, Martin, Julie og Mads og både navn og musik er udspringer af en fascination af filosoffen og fysikeren Carl Sagan. Selve navnet er taget fra slutningen af dette Carl Sagan citat: “The surface of the Earth is the shore of the cosmic ocean. On this shore, we’ve learned most of what we know. Recently, we’ve [...]
Weekender is a Philadelphia based quartet birthed from the remains of Derek and Nic Sheehan's last project, The Tweeds. Reforming with new members and a spruced up sound, Weekender released their brand new Spanish Peaks EP last month featuring their calling card blend of fuzzy, psych-laced shoegaze but with a more refined pop sheen. The band's polished sound can be attributed to working with Kyle "Slick" Johnson, an emerging producer that has built a solid reputation around his work with Fischerspooner, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Modest Mouse, Wavves, [...]
This gloomy pop track sports irresistibly catchy guitar riffs and hazy melodramatic vocals that rival the likes of Brad Hargett of The Crystal Stilts, with the addition of dreamy harmonies throughout ‘ The Firing squad ’ makes for beautiful listening – 3mins 29secs of life you wont regret spending with Climbing Boys . Bringing up the tempo, ‘ Symbolic head ’ takes a Post-Punk inspired approach, Tom Salo still holds on to his mesmerisingly moody vocals whilst whirling percussion leads the way carrying along a fulfilling and punchy [...]
Yourself In Peace // Infrarealist EP Many bands who tag themselves as “shoegaze” nowadays, in reality, aren’t even that at all. I’m afraid that maybe the real meaning of the word is getting lost and has become merely a lazy, go-to genre tag. Thankfully that complaint can’t really be lobbied against Los Angeles duo Yourself In Peace . On the other hand these guys tag themselves as beats, electronic, and *gulp* trap on their bandcamp. That’s almost enough to make me run in the other direction, but thankfully I listened first and was [...]
Another Nation's National Anthem have released their first song since the EP EP:n " Conscious Castle " in 2010. It's called "Caliban", a piece of ambient, dreamy rock. Another Nation's National Anthem on Facebook - on Spotify - on Wimp - on Soundcloud
Hidden Shoal Recordings is excited to announce the availability of CD pre-orders for Transpacific Sound Paradise , the sophomore album by Brooklyn-based dream-pop band Monocle. The CD release comes as a beautiful custom package and is limited to an edition of 200. All CD pre-orders come with an immediate download of the album in MP3 or FLAC format. The album sees official release on the 1st of May, 2013. Head to the Hidden Shoal Store for more info. The five-year gap since Monocle’s debut album Outer Sunset [...]
With wavering distorted guitars reminiscent of classic 902s tunes from the likes of Pearl Jam and the Stone Roses, we are introduced to Sulk for the very first time. This London based five piece has a nostalgic sound that's truly infectious. A shoegazy blend of Britpop and Psychedelia, Sulk is the perfect soundtrack for a rainy London day, with a pint in one hand and a joint in the other. Lay back in the grass and soak this one in. This single is out on May 20th via Perfect Sound Forever.
Sink your teeth into the latest single by these Oxford shoegazers.
I think Divehoney have already embodied their tongue-in-cheek tag line - "Making epic songs of noise is hard, but we're gonna die trying"! The Swedish shoegazers manage to say a lot without the need for too many layers. Thumbs up! Divehoney - 'Blow' [...]
In this netherworld we vacation in, this dark sweet void, there are gardens of delight and wondrous sounds, where the moon makes her way across the cold dark sky, chasing away the shadow for a moment's time, where one may find two lovers reposing, or dancing near the glistening waters of Styx, whispering sweet nothings to one another. Listening to 'Like Love', the EP by Phoenix based Shoegaze/Dream Pop band, There There, is the perfect soundtrack for such a dark, yet idyllic, setting. Their sound has been compared to bands like Blonde Redhead, Cocteau Twins, and Portishead. I personally hear [...]
In this netherworld we vacation in, this dark sweet void, there are gardens of delight and wondrous sounds, where the moon makes her way across the cold dark sky, chasing away the shadow for a moment's time, where one may find two lovers reposing, or dancing near the glistening waters of Styx, whispering sweet nothings to one another. Listening to 'Like Love', the EP by Phoenix based Shoegaze/Dream Pop band, There There, is the perfect soundtrack for such a dark, yet idyllic, setting. Their sound has been compared to bands like Blonde Redhead, Cocteau Twins, and Portishead. I personally hear [...]
Badwater will, I'd bet my bottom buck, be one of those classic unheralded records of the year that just so happens to be 2013. It was released midway through January, the month which for self-explanatory motives is so frequently overlooked in the end of years anyhow though most perturbing was the desperate lack of hyperbole to have greeted that initial emission of its dreamy shoegaze consistency. And it's an absolutely mystifying testament to its uniform quality that Lies – the flip to forthcoming single, Caught Up – didn't make the final cut, for this is Speck Mountain [...]
Delta Mainline would find it hard to describe their sound without mentioning Spiritualized but the task of living up to the name check is altogether a different prospect. Spiritualized are one of my favourite bands. The good news is that Delta Mainline are destined to be included in that list too. By Geoff Topley
Acceptance/Rebuild is a two track study in experimental Black Metal, with elements of sludge, drone, doom, and even shoegaze thrown in for good measure. The results are quite creepy, and just as successful. - By JH Statts.
Sounds Better With Reverb
The VPME
TheRecordStache
Musik Mig Blidt
GroundFloorGo
Scientists of Sound
Cactus-Mouth
Meadow Music
Hidden Shoal Recordings
The Music Ninja
The Owl Mag
i vacation in your hell
I Vacation In Your Hell
Dots & Dashes
Echoes and Dust
MVSCLES- Sweet n Sour
The National
James Blake- A Case of You (Joni Mitchell cover)
Watch The Lonely Island rap through mid-life crises in “Diaper Money” video
Video: Kanye West – Black Skinhead / New Slaves (Live on SNL)
