shoegaze
Album Review: The Amazing – In Transit
‘In Transit’, the newly released album by Swedish band, ‘The Amazing’ is a unique blend of shoegaze/dream-pop that at times diverts into the lush indie/folk vibes of bands like Belle and Sebastian or Sufjan Stevens. This is a remarkable piece of work – eleven layered, dreamy and evocative songs that somehow manage to capture within …
Track: Hatchie – Sugar and Spice, plus announcement of debut EP
While there was much excitement in Australia following the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games last night in Brisbane, Backseat Mafia’s antipodean outpost was more enthralled by the news that Brisbane’s other great product, and one of our favourites, Hatchie, released a new track along with news of her debut EP, both entitled ‘Sugar and …
Track: Maff – Melaniña (EP)
My favourite Chilean shoegaze exponents, Maff, today release their epic EP ‘Melaniña’after releasing two brilliant singles ‘Desfile’ and ‘Hawaii’ off the EP earlier this year. The EP opens with ‘Act 2’ with its hallmark driving, sustaining guitars and slow languorous drive in an enigmatic instrumental form. As with any successful instrumental, ‘Act 2’ conveys emotion …
Track: Amusement Parks On Fire – All The New Ends (EP)
Amusement Parks on Fire began as the solo project of teenager Michael Feerick in 2004, who wrote and recorded nine songs on a small budget. A couple of well-received albums with a full band followed, culminating in a hiatus in 2013 before the band returned with a single, ‘Our Goal to Realise’, in late 2017. …
Album Review: Wylderness – Wylderness
Today sees the release of the debut self-titled by Welsh band, Wylderness. Riding the new wave of shoegaze (see what I did there?), there is no doubting the debt to Ride, but this is no carbon copy or pale pastiche. Veering away from dream pop tendencies, ‘Wylderness’ represents a more muscular guitar-driven variety, not afraid …
Album Review: Lowtide – Southern Mind
I don’t know whether Melbourne is becoming the shoegaze/dream pop capital of the Southern Hemisphere, but the release last month of Lowtide‘s sophomore album, ‘Southern Mind’ would be compelling evidence. Some of the best music is being produced in the southern capital and Lowtide are leading the pack. ‘Southern Mind’ is a stellar collection of …
Album Review: Stina Stjern – Kap Herschell
Norwegian artist, Stina Stjern, has just released a gorgeous album entitled ‘Kap Herschell’ that is an enigmatic, haunting masterpiece that seems to capture the Arctic chill of the north while offering a warm enveloping refuge. The album was mixed using unusual recording techniques where the tracks were taken apart, played through old cassette tapes and …
Track: Soft Science – Undone/I Don’t Know Why I Love You (The House of Love)
Californian shoegaze band Soft Science are releasing a double A side single on 16 April and it is a dream pop/shoegaze delight. First song, ‘Undone’ has intricate, layered dreamy pop vocals with a distinctive instrumentation that recalls My Bloody Valentine with the volume turned down. The song is a gorgeous, lush wall of sound, mesmerising …
See: Candace – Mendocino
One of our favourite dream pop outfits, Candace have just released a video for the song ‘Menocino’ off their brilliant album ‘New Ruins’ which Backseat Mafia reviewed recently, saying it combined ‘angelic harmonies with shimmering instrumentation throughout…drawing from elements of shoegaze and dream pop in a dreamy languorous mix, eschewing bombast and bravado for subtlety …
Album Review: Candace – New Ruins
Today sees the release of the quite frankly gorgeous album ‘New Ruins’ by Portland, Oregon band Candace. I reviewed the single ‘Rewind’ off the album recently, noting the song’s ‘sun-bleached layered harmonies over crisply produced crystalline shards of guitar, Alpine-proportioned melodies and a bass line that manages to serve the song yet create its own …