Weekly Shoegaze / Dreampop / Psychedelic / Indie Tips #19
PICKS OF THE WEEK:
- Myrtle Beach, SC Indiepop /Tweegaze /Dreampop project of Brian Hancheck, The Arctic Flow “Goodbye Oceana” new single on Sunday Records
Among the many projects that include ‘Arctic’ in their name, the one lead by Brian Hancheck has always stood out, since the start of the 2010s, for melodies as simple as they are captivating, jangly guitars, light reverb, warm and intimate singing, enticing bittersweet tunes cloaked in endless melancholy and contemplative nostalgia, which gently expands along the hazy shimmer of a compelling pop listening that you would wish never end. “Goodbye Oceana”, also part of a 4-track Sunday Records’ label sampler, is a bright example of the above said.
- Canadian post-punk/shoegaze solo project of the guitarist of Charcoal Skies, Arthur Bennell, based in Edmonton, Alberta, BLUME “Wait For Me” from new EP ‘’Take Your Time’’
New EP is rife with Blume‘s distinctive introspective, nostalgic dream-pop, rich in bittersweet grace and discreet melodies. A full immersion in the dim light of increasingly atmospheric and contemplative soundscapes, woven with precious and shiny reverberations of guitar filigrees, that enlighten intelligible breathy vocals, steeped in an unhinged combination of hazy physicality and melancholy evanescence, creating a magical blurry line between reality and imagination.
- London, UK bedroom pop/dream pop/synth-pop SPIKE “Ticket To Paradise” new fundraising single (all the proceeds for this song will be donated to The Trussell Trust)
London based artist Spike returns after a while, since her promising debut LP in 2018, with a catchy, melancholic and dreamy dark-tinged synth-pop tune laced with sullen, emotion-rich vocals along with a striking evocative weave of shimmering synth-melodies, infused with witchy neon-lit lo-fi allure.
- Portland, OR ambient/electronic/shoegaze project Reclaimed “Waiting” from the album “Day Lost” on pictureofsound
- Bradford, UK electronica/post-rock project of Gavin Miller (former member of Johnny Poindexter), worriedaboutsatan “A Lost History” from the album “Time Lapse” on n5MD
- Gothenburg, Sweden indie lo-fi/dream pop project of Niklas Sjösvärd (Zabuton, Buchla Boys), The High Ambitions “Dance Night” from “Higher” EP on Data Airlines
- London, UK slowcore solo project VIDEODAYS “New Year (telling lies) from “Slow Comforts” EP
- Bristol, UK lo-fi/noise-pop/shoegaze soplo project PRECARIAT “If Not For You”
- Singapore‘s dream-pop band SUBSONIC EYE “Snake Outside” from “Bedroom Sessions” immigrant fundraising EP
- Chicago, IL indie pop rock trio Sunshine Boys “The World Turning Round” from the sophomore LP “Work and Love”
- San Francisco electronic/dream pop 4-piece led by Michal Kepsky, The Bilinda Butchers “Do It Right” from the new album “Night and Blur” on ZOOM LENS
- Stockholm-based, Gothenburg‘s dream pop/indie-pop band led by Mikael Carlsson, The Honeydrips “Here Comes The Sun #1 (radio edit)” new single
- Ottawa, Ontario dream pop/jangle/indie rock duo SKYTONE “House On The Hill” re-release of the debut 2014’s “Beach Ball and the Silver Frog” EP + 8 bonus tracks
- Seattle, WA indie/folk/jangle/dream pop solo project of Danny Rowland (Seapony), Space Daze “Don’t Even” from the upcoming album “Phantosmia”
- Boston, MA indie singer/songwriter Squirrel Flower “So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings” (Caroline Polachek cover) from new single “Take It or Leave It / So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings”
- Glasgow-based Irish singer-songwriter Claire McKay, AKA Martha Ffion ‘After The Fact’ from forthcoming sophomore LP ‘Nights To Forget’ and new postcard single as part of Lost Map label’s PostMap Club
- Montréal, Canada synthpop/indie pop trio Le Couleur – “Silenzio” new single
- Polish indie/dream pop trio WATERVILLE “Out Of The Window” from “Shades And Whispers” EP on Shore Dive Records
- France/Argentina lo-fi indie dreampop duo of Paris‘ Camille Motto and Cordoba‘s Lucas Caddeo, Cuerpos Cósmicos “Rain” title track from the debut album “Rain” on Choléra Cosmique
- Russian shoegaze/dream pop band from Saint-Petersburg, Весна Весна [Vesna Vesna] “Venera” from the album ‘Kogda Ryadom Ogni’ on Belka Records
- NYC indie/psych/jangle/power pop band led by Ezra Tenenbaum (ex-EZTV) and Michael Stasiak, EZRAT “Distortions” from the upcoming vinyl album “Carousel” on Bobo Integral
- Chicago’s bedroom pop/jangle/dream-pop project of Kenneth Foss, aka TEEN BLUSH “Drive Me Wild!” new single
- Palmerston North, New Zealand slowcore trio Soda Boyz ‘Bad Friend’ from the upcoming new album ‘Farewell Spit’ on Papaiti Records
- Chicago‘s slacker/surf/shoegaze/indie rock power trio fronted by John Rejba (Boys Life, The Farewell Bend, Rare Animals), Wet Tropics “Cool California” new single
- Paris-based psychedelic garage band fronted by Australian singer/songwriter Nathan Roche, LE VILLEJUIF UNDERGROUND “Ghost of the Water” from the new 2-track 7″ single “LES HUITRES A CANCALE” out now on Born Bad Records
- Russian krautrock/psychedelic all-girl quartet from Moscow, LUCIDVOX ‘Knife (Нож)’ new single on Glitterbeat Records
- Argentinian noise-rock/post-punk/psych/shoegaze power trio from Mar del Plata, Tomates en Verano ”En El Ruedo” new single from upcoming album “Todos los días son felices” (produced by Graham Sutton) on Casa del Puente Discos
- Moscow, Russia experimental/post-punk/shoegaze duo GLASWEN “Definition”
- Kansas City, MO. psych/grunge/space/guitar rock band SHINER “Low Hanging Fruit” from the new (after 19 years) album “Schadenfreude”
- Helsinki guitar rock/noise-rock trio Love Sport “Giant Hoof” new single from the upcoming album “And Justice For All” on Soliti Records
- Brooklyn, NY grunge/indie rock trio Radical Dads “Vanishing Point” from the upcoming 4th album “Paved Mountain”
- Melbourne-based Australian surf/indie/scuzz pop band originally from Hobart, Tasmania, HEART BEACH “Other Side” new single
- Scottish post-rock/alternative rock band, We Were Promised Jetpacks ‘Same Mistakes’ off of upcoming “Out of interest” EP on Big Scary Monsters
- Madrid-based, Spanish indie/dream pop duo Marcos y Molduras “La Rutina” from the new debut 10″ “Te espero en casa” on Discos de Kirlian
- Atlanta, Georgia post-punk/shoegaze trio MORE “No Time at All” off of “Immortal” EP out now
- Albany, NY based lo-fi/shoegaze/dream pop duo LAVEDA “Rager” from the forthcoming debut LP “What Happens After” on Color Station.
- Belfast, Northern Ireland bittersweet jangle guitar pop trio SEA PINKS “Crocuses” new single
- Vancouver, BC psych/dream pop/shoegaze band DID YOU DIE “Shine So Real” new single
- New York bedroom/dream pop/indie/new wave solo project of Vinny Ball, aka VAIN PURSUIT “Burn My Fingers” new 2-track single
- Hull, UK dream pop/shoegaze band BDRMM “A Reason To Celebrate” new single via Sonic Cathedral
- Japanese indie pop/ shoegaze/ dream pop band FLANNEL “at least I” from the 2-track single “little / at least I” (2020 remaster)
- Argentinian indie /shoegaze /garage /dream rock duo from Buenos Aires, RIEL “1990” new single
- Japanese bedroom/indie/dream pop/surf rock solo project of Tokyo-based Azusa Suga (For Tracy Hyde/AprilBlue), Letters To Annika “Tidal” new single
- Japanese indie/shoegaze 5-piece STOMP TALK MODSTONE “Fade Out” from 2-track single “Fade Out/Untitled”
- Irish psych indie-pop project of No Monster Club ringleader (also with Ginnels, Paddy Hanna and Grand Pocket Orchestra), Sir Bobby Jukebox “You Only Dance” from the upcoming LP “Friendship Gift” on Already Dead Tapes and Records
- Riverside, CA dream pop /goth-gaze solo project of Daniel Romero (former Dream Suicides), Star-Crossed Lovers “Razorblades” from the debut “Star-Crossed Lovers” EP
- Melbourne, Australia synth-pop/dream pop DIY one-girl-project of Nat Chippy, Japanese Heart Software “For Another Day” from “Shelter” EP on Sunday Records
- Stockholm, Sweden indie /psych-pop artist SIBILLE ATTAR “Hurt Me” new single on PNKSLM Recordings
- Auckland, New Zealand indie/shoegaze/guitar rock duo Lomarðian “Unravelled”
- Italian post-punk/jangle/indie-pop quartet from Turin, SMILE “Every New Mistake” debut single
- Canadian indie-garage-folk band lead by songwriter Mathias Kom, The Burning Hell “I Want to Drink in a Bar” (coronavirus lockdown single)
- Nashville, TN based dream pop/indie rock outfit fronted by Jordan Gomes-Kuehner, HEAVEN HONEY “Tomorrow I’ll Try” new single on Cold Lunch Recordings and To-go Records
- Los Angeles based synthpop/indie rock artist Erica Shafer “Forceless” debut single
- Groningen, Netherlands synthpop/indie-pop solo-project of Elias Elgersma (from The Homesick and Yuko Yuko), ELIAS EL GERSMA “Person You and Me” from the upcoming album “The Funny Way I Lie” (album recorded in Hallum in late 2017)
- Chicago electronic dream-pop duo (previously known as Fireflies and Tiny Microphones), Tiny Fireflies “Melody (The Bilinda Butchers Remix)” (Originally released as a bonus track on the Japanese release of “The Space Between”)
- Ypsilanti, Michigan lo-fi dream folk singer/songwriter RAW HONEY “Walkaround” from the album “From the archives” [a collection of songs written and recorded between 2012 and 2016]
- Nanaimo, Canada bedroom/ambient/drone/kraut/library/dream pop/electronic duo Leisure Walks “Discipline / Liberty from the album “…is beauty: In Love with Musik & Sound”
- Philadelphia-based instrumental guitar drone from Matt Weed of Rosetta, GHOST LODE “Week Six” from the album “Lenten Distance”