Intro to shoegazer...

what is shoegazer

Shoegazer was a brief rock n roll movement out of northern England in the early 90s. Or maybe it started in 1988. I just really like the music and am not in any way a music historian, so please keep in mind that there are errors all over this page.

The epicenter of the thundering wall-of-sound shoegazer earthquake was Manchester. Why? I think because that's were the Stone Roses are from. They were gods. They could do no wrong. They were the resurrection. I adored them. Then they released "Second Coming."

more about genres

If you look on the allmusic guide, they have listings for the styles "madchester" and "shoegazer." I think these are basically the same thing. I guess "shoegazer" features more distortion and general trippiness. But the Stone Roses have backwards music B-sides. What could be trippier than that.

Also there are some who would lump space rock and shoegazer music together. My opinion: space rock is a much wider genre, and is as intrinsically American (or even Michiganisch) as shoegazer is English.

essential music

Alright now it is time to introduce the list. Again this is my own personal opinion. There is a tight core of key shoegazer bands. In most cases, their earliest stuff is the most authentic shoegazer music. However, since this is supposed to be an introduction for people who are just now becoming interested in the shoegazer movement, the list below contains many albums that were released after the bands achieved some sort of critical acclaim and had substantial recording budgets. If you fall in love with the bands, then it is time to start trying to track down the earlier, more "authentic," recordings. Also, in the "Further Listening" sections, not everything is shoegazer. But it's all GOOD.

my bloody valentine. loveless. 1991 Creation, Sire	Notes This is simply number one. You can read on allmusic.com about how they spent so long in the studio they practically bankrupted Creation to make this record. My Bloody Valentine is famous for distortion so fuzzy it turns your speakers inside out. Kevin Shields is the mastermind behind this project, and sings with Belinda Butcher. This band's influence on music makers around the world rivals that of the Velvet Underground. Their previous albums are not as fuzzed out, but they're still quite excellent. Their lyrics often focus on sex.	Further listening MBV / glider ep MBV / tremelo ep Lilys / in the presence of nothing All Natural Lemon Lime Flavors / turning into small much stuff on the clairecords label Black Tambourine (it's like very early MBV)

stone roses. the complete stone roses. rec.1985-1990 Silvertone	Notes This is not an album. The Stone Roses have 2 albums, an eponymous one and Second Coming. This disc is a compilation of singles and B-sides from their first album, as well as some earlier stuff that you have to fork mad bank to get otherwise. Therefore this is the one that gets into the shoegazer top 10. Their second album is alright, but would not even make it into the shoegazer top 25. Their lyrics often focus on how great they are.	Further listening Primal Scream / Screamadelica (should actually have a slot of its own) Inspiral Carpets Charlatans UK Jupiter Sun, from San Jose Atomic Bubbles, from Hong Kong come on, email me some more suggestions. Blur? Jesus and Mary Chain?

slowdive. souvlaki. 1994 Creation, SBK	Notes Slowdive is pure genius. Actually, the top three should all be tied for first. Most shoegazer bands ended up in tragedy. Excessive intake of hallucinogens, followed by hardcore heroin habits and then an almost psychotic bout of Christian devotion makes for some rather sad music (Ride, Stone Roses, etc.). But... Slowdive released three very different and yet all perfect albums (this is the second), then broke up and reformed into mojave3 before releasing their crap. All eps by Slowdive are worth import prices for as well, especially 5ep. Do not hesitate to kill for 5ep if you like Slowdive. Slowdive, like My Bloody Valentine and Curve, have male/female vocals. Their lyrics don't make all that much sense.	Further listening This is hard because the Slowdive universe includes many sounds. Everything by Slowdive, without exception Bowery Electric uxr = [0,0.] Should (formerly Shift but I've never seen any Shift releases from these dudes) Seefeel, Cocteau Twins, Swallow, Dead Can Dance Chöying Drolma + Steve Tibbets / Chö has a similar feel to Slowdive's Pygmalion

ride. going blank again. 1992 Sire	Notes This completes the holy quartet of shoegazer bands. This album is a great intro Ride album, although Smile and Nowhere are both excellent and actually more authentic shoegazer full-lengths. There is also a killer ep, today forever, which has "Vapour Trail" in the American release and "Today" (a great "morning after" song) on the import. "Vapour Trail" is probably the number one shoegazer anthem of all time. Ride rocked hard, and made great use of the four elements of hip hop oh I mean shoegazer: distortion, dynamics, great EPs, and vocal harmony. Their lyrics focused on time and drugs. AVOID ANY RELEASE BY RIDE DATED LATER THAN 1993. After 1993 Their lyrics focused on Jesus more than anything else, and the music sucks.	Further listening Jupiter Sun again Grey Electric from Ann Arbor (uh... except I don't think they have any records out) Early Smashing Pumpkins Maybe some early Catherine Wheel Asteroid no. 4 / What a sorry way to go 7"

curve. pubic fruit. 1991-1992 Anxious, Sony	Notes Curve features the vocal stylin's of Toni Halliday. Her voice is amazing. I would not at all be surprised if she has whatever it takes to be a powerful witch. The music is a bit more electronic than other shoegazers, but hey, it works. This is not an album, it is a compilation of 3 eps, which are all so good that one of them would be here if this cheaper disc didn't exist. Their lyrics are quite poetic and postmodern.	Further listening Lush also has a female lead singer, hapa I think. The only reason why Lush is not on the list is because they don't have any single album that can top these. But they still have some great tunes of their own. Get Curve's first album, Doppelganger.

revolver. babys angry. 1992 Hut, Caroline	Notes These guys didn't get much hype at all. But they wrote some killer songs. I have not heard all their stuff, but they came out with 3 dope eps, which are compiled on this here CD. As melodic as the Stone Roses, with distortion that at times compares with Ride, they are a bit superficial and sweet, but incredibly delicious. Ok I'll admit it. One of the eps (the ep's cover art is included in Baby's Angry), is very cute. He's got the pouty lips and the mop of straight hair that adorn all the cutest shoegazer boys. That's the REAL reason I like this band. Love is one of their common lyrical themes.	Further listening Northern Picture Library / Paris ep Well, allmusic.com lists a bunch of indy rockers in their shoegazer classification, so let me just name-drop them here: Drop 19s, Swirlies, Kitchens of Distinction.

moose. sonny of sam. 1991 Virgin	Notes Everything of theirs: out of print. I found out about them too late. BUT. They have a new album coming out on Le Grand Magistery in July/August 2000. Moose is very melodic, not as dreamy as the others. They skipped the drugs and went straight to the Christianity, but they did it without sucking.	Further listening House of Love Wedding Present

loop. a gilded eternity. 1990 beggars banquet, BMG	Notes Loop were making grindy distorted guitar washes before there was such a thing as shoegazers. But, I only recently found out about them. Their releases before this one may be very hard to find. They've got the intensity of Ride, but the full distortion of My Bloody Valentine. This album is pervaded by a sense of epic doom. I can't understand the words.	Further listening Lenola Verve / Storm in Heaven Swervedriver Pale Saints' first album (but it's much sweeter than Loop) Longest track: 9:23

chapterhouse. whirlpool. 1991 Dedicated, BMG	Notes There are a several essential shoegazer anthems on this album: Breather, Pearl, and Falling Down. Breather is a definite repeat-1 song, with a chorus you never want to end. Sing along and find out why it's called Breather. After this album though, they stopped being shoegazer and just put out some dull jangly sorta dance-oriented pop. Cheesy. But this album is excellent. Rachel Goswell of Slowdive sings on one track. Maybe their lyrics are about personal relationships or something. I don't know.	Further listening their Mesmerise ep their Falling Down ep Charlatans UK (should have their own entry)

boo radleys. everything's alright forever. 1992 Columbia	Notes I don't even have this album. I've been told for years that it's good. And Sara insists that they are totally shoegazer.	Further listening ?