Back in April, NYC-based shoegaze band, HEAVEN, released an LP on Little Cloud Records called Dream Aloud, which is filled with elements of rock, dream pop, and synthpop. HEAVEN engages a sense of nostalgia in this album, reminding me of some of my favorite shoegaze records from the mid-90s to early 2000s. I really enjoyed the journey that this album took me on, but I’d really love to highlight some of the best tracks off the record. Starting off with the LP’s title track, Dream Aloud, we’re brought along a more gentle ride. Leaning more into dream pop than shoegaze, Dream Aloud is the most nostalgic-sounding track. I love the…
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LSD & The Search for God. Kraus. Launder. 5.2.2025
“Shoe-gaze” as a genre of music has been around since the 1990s. I like to refer to the genre as “Dream-gaze,” and I’ve also heard it referred to as “Sea-gaze. Both of which are less condescending names, while they more accurately describe the sound and appeal of the genre. The genre made a revival in the early 2000s, making it more well known to a wider international audience. And now it seems it’s making an even bigger comeback as a popular genre with the Generation Z crowd. This was evident at this concert at Great American Music Hall San Francisco, where the line to get in the door was wrapped…
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LSD and the Search for God – Double EP Review
No need to search very far for standout shoegaze – LSD and the Search for God calls San Francisco home. LSD and the Search for God have zeroed in on what makes good shoegaze good shoegaze. LSD and the Search for God currently has two EPs out – their self-titled EP and Heaven Is a Place – released in 2007 and 2016, respectively. I’ve had the pleasure of having LSD and the Search for God in my rotations since 2023, but this was my first listen of Heaven Is a Place. Both of these EPs are definitely staying in my rotations going forward. The first song I’d like to dive…
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Swirlpool | Distant Echoes
After forming in 2017, and releasing an EP and two singles, this is the German shoegaze band’s debut LP. Mixed by Ride’s Mark Gardner, the album has a ’90s “classic” shoegaze feel to it, with all the trademarks of hushed vocals, whammy bar tone bending, reverb and distortion, but with the band’s new 21st century take as well as their other songwriting influences. All the tracks do have that lush tapestry of production on the whole album. The band has some cool videos to match their sound as well. The opening song, and album name, “Distant Echoes” has a deep, slow-moving distortion wave feel to it, setting the tone for…
