It’s often said that music is just organized vibrations.
Most musicians achieve that purpose by using instruments to create those vibrations. But on Low’s Double Negative, it sounds like the group is manipulating the air directly, creating a dense, otherworldly sonic landscape that is as unsettling as it is transcendent.
Ever since Alcest’s 2005 Le Secret, bandleader Neige’s fascination for shoegaze, dream pop, and post rock have been no secret. Throughout their career, they had fused elements of those sounds with traditional black metal to make something truly special.
But on 2014’s Shelter, they leaned heavy on the gentler side of their sonic palette.
I’m a big fan of dream pop and shoegaze. Bands like Beach House, Cocteau Twins, Slowdive, and My Bloody Valentine.
And as I’ve read more about the pioneers of those genres, I am always, always surprised to see Mazzy Star on that list.
If ever there was a post rock crossover pop hit, it’s M83’s Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming.
This record debuted at number fifteen on the Billboard Top 200. The bouncing single “Midnight City“, complete with a screaming saxophone solo, was ubiquitous. The group appeared on a number of late night talk show performances. Songs were played in commercials and movie trailers.
This is only made more impressive by the fact that it’s a double album by a band that made their name playing synth-driven drone music.
Throughout their career, Beach House has consistently written textbook-perfect dream pop. Teen Dream is a bonafide masterpiece. It topped nearly every 2010 year-end list, and with good reason. Bloom was similarly brilliant.
When Depression Cherry dropped in 2015, it hit all of the same notes. But I started wondering if the world needed another Beach House record. Two months later, they released Thank Your Lucky Stars, and the question got louder.
Now that they’ve released their seventh LP, the music world is left pondering this quandary once again.
If nothing else, no one can accuse Deerhunter of making the same album twice. Their discography has shifted between hypnotic shoegaze to abrasive garage rock to doo-wop informed dream pop. But their discography is even further augmented by Atlas Sound and Lotus Plaza, the twin solo projects of co-lead singers Bradford Cox and Locket Pundt.
At first glance, it might seem like shoegazers/indie rockers Deerhunter are subject to their eccentric and unpredictable leader, Bradford Cox. He hogs most of the attention, and most of the press is focused on his singular strangeness.
But looking deeper, you’ll notice that Locket Pundt has just as strong a hand in the group. One listen to his work as Lotus Plaza proves that.
Pop music and I have a tenuous relationship. I have tried for years to be a better poptimist, letting myself get lost in the catchy singalongs and feel-good beats. But I’ve never been able to shake the feeling that most pop music is just vapid and corny.
But every once in a while, a pop singer will rise from the din of mass-produced hacks and sugar-coated copycats to create something truly special.
Michael Jackson was one of them. Lady Gaga is another. And now, we have Lorde.
The Besnard Lakes claim to be a dark horse. And while the cooing harmonies that open the album might seem to suggest otherwise, they quickly prove themselves to be a few shades more menacing than most of their indie rock counterparts.
Sometimes, it’s possible to predict how a record will sound using context clues. And judging by the band name, song titles, astral-philic record cover, and release date, it’s easy to tell what Heavenly Bodies’ sole release would sound like.