The Predatory Wasp
Suntub is the second full length album from ML Buch, a double record of 15 pieces by the Danish composer and producer; a dreamy mix of shoegaze, experimental electronics and bedroom pop. I’ve only listened a couple of times so far, but so far it’s pretty much flawless, and up there with my favourite albums of the year. So many highlights, but album opener Pan over the hill should give you a good idea of what to expect.
Australian trio Hydroplane formed back in the mid-90s, initially to record a single seven-inch. They ended up releasing three albums, including a self-titled debut recently reissued by Efficient Space and garnering a cult fanbase that continues to grow to this day. Out last week, a new retrospective Selected Songs 1997-2003 compiles some of their finest recorded moments, including International Exiles which has all the hallmarks of their instantly recognisable sound; hushed, lazy drums, dreamy, deeply melancholic chords and Kerrie Bolton’s ethereally indifferent vocal.
https://hydroplaneband.bandcamp.com/album/selected-songs-1997-2003
I’m glad I hadn’t listened to any of the singles from Slowdive’s new album everything is alive ahead of its release last week, as although it does mean I’m a little behind the curve, these tracks are undoubtedly more impactful as part of the whole than separated out. prayer remembered is the one that really got me on the first listen; a dreamy, melodic, instrumental slice of shoegaze perfection.
If washed out guitars and dreamy vocals are rock aesthetics you enjoy, then behold! A lovely new album from Hull/Leeds shoegazers bdrmm. I didn’t hear their 2020 debut, but from what I’ve read I Don’ Know is a step up in terms of the scope of its production. Be Careful came out a single a month or so ago, but it’s new to me so may be to you as well.
Nabihah Iqbal’s new album DREAMER arrived last week, nearly 6 years after her debut Weighing of the Heart. That gap was due to her studio being burgled in early 2020, with her gear and work – including her new album – all taken. DREAMER see’s Nabihah reflect on these experiences, and was produced with a vastly reduced suite of instruments – not that you’d necessarily be able to tell from the results, which are rich and expansive, encompassing shoegaze, post-punk and the more experimental electronica with which she name her name. In Light opens the album, beautifully setting a hazy, dreamlike tone which continues throughout.
A welcome return to Portland duo Mint Julep on the blog today, who follow up last month’s A Rising Sun with an even more emphatically lovely slice of dreamy pop/shoegaze. Pulse builds from a steady kick drum and shimmering guitars to an all-consuming climax of astonishing intensity, with Hollie’s ghostly vocal a calming, spine-tingling presence throughout. Definite shades of Beach House at their most emphatically emotional. Plus: their new album A Deep And Dreamless Sleep lands next week. Happy daze indeed.
https://mintjulep.bandcamp.com/album/in-a-deep-and-dreamless-sleep
The Predatory Wasp 