#aplegate

Photo: Scotland's Catholic Action

The sound of fuzzed-out shoegazing guitars has always been somewhat of a niche. Even in the height of its popularity, these sounds remained "cult" sounds more than what one would call mainstream phenomenon. Nevertheless, regardless of how popular a genre is, we post music we like and the fuzzy and scuzzy is something we like to say the least. So for our 7th blog digest we dug deep in our inbox, went back in time to the not-so-distant "blog past" and found some gems and put them on display for the world to listen to.

Aplegate - Waterhole

Here's a curious little track from teenage whizz-kid Aplegate from Down Under in Castlemaine, Australia. While our first track "Waterhole" is not exactly shoegaze per-se, it does however work over a loungy dank to build on a deeply-saturated guitar drugde that spirals over a psychedelic spin.

Catholic Action - Doing Well

No, it's not an over-zealous Christian organization we're talking about here, unless of course we're talking about the band's religious homage of Rita Ora (see below). Catholic Action in our reality is a Glaswegian garage rock quartet, which for their latest single "Doing Well" fills the air with billowy vocals and lacquered guitar sheen. You can check out "Feeling Well" below:

And who can forget Rita Ora ♡:

Drongo - Miami

Drongo is the British duo of James Wells and Ellis Durand, whose shoegazing melodies are heavily influenced by the heyday of hippie psychedelia. Against the glitchy squeal of bent electronics, "Miami" launches itself from the far echo of its resonant, filtered vocal into a grinding shoegaze infinity.

Eliza & The Delusionals - Salt

Hailing from Australia's Gold Coast, are Eliza & The Delusionals, frontwoman Eliza Klatt's noisy, power pop stint. Sweet and sour, their latest single, "Salt" features honey-tinged vocals harmonized to the grunge of post-punk grit.

Ipanema Cosmonauts - Kites (feat. Rosen mit Rosen)

Floating in between dream pop and shoegaze, Ipanema Cosmonauts are Alice and Serge from Saransk in central Russia. On track "Kites", a glowing vocal sweetness from Japanese feature Rosen mit Rosen gives a slight tinge of soul, as the scaling guitars refract its vocal glisten. With Japanese duo Rosen mit Rosen on vocals, the lazy comparison to the Japanese-language drift of shoegazers Asobi Seksu can definitely be made here.

JW Ridley - Everything (Deathless)

The solo project of London's Jack Ridley, the former art school student began his stint as a bedroom artist after moving back home to St. Albans, where writing music began as a cathartic release from personal troubles. Moving between the danceable funk of its post-punk trickle and the gentle shower of its vocal, on JW Ridley's "Everything", the track eases over a peaceful relent.

Saint Cecilia - Everyone You Know

Hailing from La Piedad, Mexico but now based in Los Angeles, Saint Cecilia is the artistic handle of Cecilia Enriquez. On "Everyone You Know", the track combines a deep dredge of alternative rock guitars over a light and breathy vocal soothe.

Silver Rose - Take Me Home

Mexico City's Carla Sariñana found herself north of the border for six months, and its during this time her project Silver Rose was birthed. Her most recent work "Take Me Home", sears over scorching guitar and a heavy vocal sustain joined by the coaxing coo of Sariñana. True to the shoegazing spirit, her latest video single "Take Me Home" is shot with a decidedly DIY feel to it.

Spare Parts for Broken Parts - Pleasure Delay

Spare Parts for Broken Hearts is represented by the Long Beach, California trio of Sarah Green, Laurita Guaico and Mikey Vallejo. Spilling over a grungy and post-alternative grind, their latest single "Pleasure Delay" trembles to the shaken shiver of frontwoman Sarah Green's vocals. Wedged between softer elements like fluttery choral overlays and bittersweet strings, it's a heaviness matched by a lushness in sound.

Surf Rock is Dead - In Between

Surf Rock is Dead is the Brooklyn duo of Kevin Pariso and Joel Witenberg, who pen shimmering shoegaze tracks. Their latest work, "In Between" grinds over heavy guitar presence yet maintains a softness through a deeply-frosted sound of muted fuzz and textured, vocal androgyny.

weird. - Forever Floating Feels

A Rome, Italy quartet of shoegazers, Weird. brings in a deeply-saturated sound with "Forever Floating Feels". Suspended in its haze of drowned guitar stroke and the hushed echo of its vocal sustain, it's a track that oozes out a nebula of dream pop textures.