Review: Lush fans will be aware that three of the bands albums are all being reissued, but also this year will founding member Emma Anderson release her solo debut long player. Pearlies, released by Sonic Cathedral, again shows why Anderson is one of the most underrated British songwriters to have come up during the Brit pop and shoegaze era. Here she works with Maps aka James Chapman on tune that effortlessly mix electronic pop with psych and folk and astute lyrics that muse on subjects such as confronting your fears, embracing independence and moving on.
Review: When Bedroom originally landed in 2020, critics heralded the arrival of a modern shoegaze classic, helping kickstart a resurgence for the sound which would go on to become one of the defining genres of the pandemic and immediate post-pandemic years. Listeners perhaps drawn to its expansive, highly emotional and deep, resonant sound thanks to the inherent reflective qualities - we've all had a lot to reflect on. Understatements aside, Bedroom still has the same impact four years later as Sonic Cathedral - the most appropriately named label to carry this - makes the decision to reissue. From the uptempo and life-affirming swirls of 'Mono', to '(Un)Happy''s mournful tones and the darker trip into 'Is That What You Wanted to Hear?', this is inescapably good and, if it's not there already
Review: Entering his fourth decade of service it's probably fair to call Andy Bell - guitarist with Ride, Oasis bassist and an increasingly renowned solo artist - an indie icon and round legend. After an EP of covers of tunes that inspired his last album this month, 'The Grounding Process' features four stripped down versions of tracks from 'Flicker'. Bell says 'World of Echo' was written at the height of an obesession with Scouse indie/skifflers The La's, while 'She Calls The Tune' was penned on tour wioth Oasis in 1999, particularly dear to Bell as it ended a long period of writer's block.
Review: Ride guitarist and songwriter Andy Bell drops this blue-splattered 10" with covers and acoustic versions of tunes that are said to have inspired his last album Flicker, which was released on Sonic Cathedral to great acclaim back in February. It is one of three such EPs and this one features an opening track written by Yoko Ono, a second cut by Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Danny Thompson, Terry Cox and Jacqui McShee, one by Raymond Douglas Davies and a closer by the late, great Arthur Russell. He brings his unique alternative and indie perspective to the originals and they serve as a great backstory and accompanying listen to the aforementioned album.
Murmuration Of Warm Dappled Light On Her Back After Swimming
The Slight Unease Of Seeing A Crescent Moon In Blue Midday Sky
Tidal Love Conversation In That Familiar Golden Orchard
A Pyramid Hidden By Centuries Of Neon Green Undergrowth
Review: He may be a shoegaze and dream-pop legend, but sometime Ride guitarist and songwriter Andy Bell has spent much of the last few years making ultra-immersive, out-there ambient soundscapes that are as mind-soothing as they are enveloping and, at times, overwhelming. Tidal Love Numbers, his latest album, once again puts his gorgeous, layered guitar playing front and centre, with collaborators Masal (a duo from Essex) providing complimentary harp, synth and drum sounds. They call the resultant four tracks "ambient, astral jazz". That's a fairly apt description, with the four stretched-out tracks sitting somewhere between Bell's own ambient work, the ambient-Americana of Jonny Nash, and the open-minded experiments of 21st century harpists such as Zeena Parkins.
Review: On Aurelia, shoegaze duo Deary show their evolution since their 2023 debut, embracing a more collaborative approach that results in a richer, more cohesive sound. The EP's six tracks, including singles like 'The Moth' and 'Selene', reveal a newfound maturity in both production and songwriting. With Slowdive's Simon Scott lending his drumming talents and mastering expertise, the record blends influences from classic styled shoegaze bands mixing with the duo's distinct dream-pop sensibilities. Tracks like 'The Drift' bristle with urgency, while 'Dream Of Me' dips into trip-hop, evoking Portishead. Lyrically, Aurelia explores themes of transformation, reflecting the band's personal and artistic growth, making it a striking follow-up to their debut.
Review: Deerhunter co-founder and drummer Moses Archuleta works solo under the Moon Diagrams alias and here he impresses once more with a second album, Cemetery Classics. This 12-track release is a collaboration between Sonic Cathedral and Angus Andrew's new label No Gold adn it has been mixed by Simian Mobile Disco man James Ford. Guests like Anastasia Coope, Patrick Flegel and Josh Diamond from Gang Gang Dance all feature on what is Archuleta's first new music since 2019's Trappy Bats mini-album. The album spans several genres, as you would expect, from Basinski-esque degradation on 'Neptune' to industrial noise on 'Listen To Me,' with postmodern pop, trip-hop, shoegaze, and more. The man himself calls it a "graveyard disc" of songs for the afterlife.
Review: Sonic Cathedral share the debut album of Not Me But Us, Two, facilitating the Neapolitan duo's astonishing talent for production and pitch-bent melancholy. Made up of Bruno Bavota and Fabrizio Somma (aka. K-Conjog), this new effort blends each of their influences with echoes of ambient, techno, 2000s club culture, postclassical music and hints of post-rock, making for a fascinating electronica cocktail. Lending well to Bavota's usual piano-based pieces, the new collaborative approach, which fed a new interest in analog gear, also resulted in an effective vehicle to process grief and gaze into new horizons for the artists.
Review: Martin Jenkins aka Pye Corner Audio kept existing fans happy and won over many more new ones with his Let's Emerge! album in summer. As it often the way it now gets remixed with a Sonic Boom twist. The three cuts are all fresh and original fusion of cold wave and synth with analogue textures and enveloping sub bass, heady sound designs that make you wonder how and plenty more besides. 'Haze Loops', 'Saturation Point' and 'Warmth Of The Sun' are all classics in the making.
Review: Martin Jenkins aka Pye Corner Audio has been a busy man. He ended a fine trio of albums last year with Entangled Routes, then dropped a live album on this label early in the year, and now quickly follows it up with yet another fine long player. Ride guitarist Andy Bell plays on five of the tunes and is a collection that comes heated by plenty of sun and coloured with bright acid psychedelics. Says the man himself, "I try to tailor my work slightly differently for the various labels that I work with, and this seems to fit nicely with Sonic Cathedral's ethos." He has sure done that.
Review: Even if you've not heard Three Quarter Skies yet, this one should already be in the shopping cart. They had us at 'new project from Simon Scott of Slowdive', and we're not sure anybody has bothered to look back since. Eight gorgeous tracks that have grown out of last year's Universal Flames EP, which introduced this new moniker to the world, and was itself based on a semi-improvised live recording session. Here, though, things are resolutely more focused and planned. Depth of sound is a big aspect, with plenty navigating similar cosmic territories to the shoegaze Scott built his stellar reputation on. Close your eyes to the world then, and allow these sounds to wash over and immerse you - there's little chance you'll find anything quite so powerful this week.
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