This is almost an extended loop rather than a standalone song, but it’s a very pleasant one, that seems to have been composed as a general tribute to shoegaze.
Posts Tagged ‘Shoegazer’
Shoegazer Sunday: Drifter’s “Fade”
Sunday, April 22nd, 2012Shoegazer Sunday: Civic’s “Tensai” and “Guitar”
Sunday, April 15th, 2012This week’s Shoegazer Sunday offering is a Japanese band called Civic. First up is “Tensai”:
Here’s a live version of “Guitar,” which is a tremendously fun high energy number. Skip the first 1:20 seconds of annoying “walking on stage” intro electronica.
Like many of my Japanese shoegazer discoveries, Civic records for High Fader Records. Guitar seems to have been reborn there as “Tobacco” up on the High Fader Myspace page, and have another song called “Innocent” on their own MySpace page. They have a very coherent, appealing sound, with the male and female vocalists trading off verses. They’re probably closest to SuperCar among their Japanese shoegaze brethren, but they’re also have a bit of U2, The Beatles, The Byrds, and maybe The Ramones in their sound.
Since I don’t read Kanji, I couldn’t tell you what the name of this song is:
I would buy a full length Civic album right now if one were available in the U.S…
Shoegazer Sunday: Speaker Gain Teardrop’s “Vasumitra”
Sunday, April 8th, 2012More obscure Japanese shoegaze, this time from Speaker Gain Teardrop off their album RENDERING ENCRYPTION (a title that will no doubt bring a smile to Cory Doctrow’s face).
Here’s both the live and studio versions.
Shogazer Sunday: Alison’s Halo’s “Leech”
Sunday, April 1st, 2012Alsion’s Halo was evidently among the first American band to respond to the first wave of Manchester-base Shoegazer, forming in Arizona in 1992.
Evidently the stopped recording for a while, then reformed as a band called Lochheed (sic), which sounds more ambient.
Shoegazer Sunday: The Joy Formidable’s “The Greatest Light the Greatest Shade”
Sunday, March 25th, 2012Welsh trio The Joy Formidable offers up dense shoegaze textures with poppy hooks, sort of like a cross between between Siouxie and the Banshees and Adorable.
Since they’re been on Letterman, I guess they’re hardly a secret…
Shoegazer Sunday: Lemon’s Chair’s “Sonar”
Sunday, March 18th, 2012Here’s a live version of Japanese threesome Lemon’s Chair song “Sonar.” It starts off as some very pleasant noodling, and then more than halfway in transforms into a sonic wall of sound that never quite loses the central groove.
They also have a nice solid slab of steady-state shoegazer sweetness called “Swallowtail” on iTunes, but there doesn’t seem to be a version of that on YouTube.
Shoegazer Sunday: Mazzy Star’s “Fade Into You”
Sunday, March 11th, 2012Mazzy Star’s “Fade Into You” is the music Bruce Sterling would put on at the end of the party after every Turkey City Writer’s Workshop held at his house, mainly so people would leave. It worked too, not because it was bad, but because the waltz tempo, echoey steel guitar and smoky vocals make it the perfect “chill out at the end of a long day and feel your eyelids getting heavy” song. I bought the single off iTunes, but I think I might need to pick up the entire album, So Tonight That I Might See, as I’ve developed a craving for Hope Sandoval’s voice, which combines that smokey, chill tone of a classic jazz/blues chanteuse with peak-period Sinatra’s last-second, end-of-the-measure timing.
Is Mazzy Star shoegazer? I think they’re more sui generis, but I’ve seen “Fade Into You” on several Best of Shoegazer lists, and that’s good enough for me…
Shoegazer Sunday: Slowdive’s “Machine Gun”
Sunday, March 4th, 2012I’m not nearly as big a fan of Slowdive’s Souvlaki as I am of their debut album Just For A Day, but “Machine Gun” is my favorite off of Souvlaki.
Shoegazer Sunday: Soliness’ “Skygaze”
Sunday, February 26th, 2012This piece has a lot going for it, even beyond the alteration, though I could do without the bit of black metal growling in the middle. Solines evidently hails from Denmark.
It reminds me a bit of the half of System of a Downs’ “Toxicity” that didn’t suck.
Shoegazer Sunday: Ride’s “Vapour Trail”
Sunday, February 19th, 2012Just got back from a business trip, so it’s going to take me a few days to get up to speed. So here’s a tune from classic UK Shoegazer band Ride.