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Popular Shoegaze/Dreampop Groups

Float away in the pretty skies of your own blissful euphoria

By Jayla McKiverPublished 5 years ago 4 min read
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Although not mainstream, Slowdive solidified their place in 90s music history 

Dreampop AKA Shoegaze has been around since the early 1980s with origins in the United Kingdom, but eventually reaching cultural popularity within the states thanks to groups like My Bloody Valentine and Lush solidifying this sub-genre’s social impact on the youth of the early 90s

Even though there really isn’t any new Shoegaze inspired groups or artists these days, you can find its influence in certain artists such as Beach House, The Neighborhood, or The 1975 that experiment with more atmospheric sounding tones, melodies, breathy vocals, and processed, echo-laden guitars and synthesizers to make up a genre full of surreal euphoric feelings of memories you’ve never had before, so here’s a list of some famous groups of this unique genre of music

Cocteau Twins

Elizabeth “Liz” Fraser (left), Simon Raymonde (middle), and Robin Guthrie

This Scottish group from Grangemouth, United Kingdom formed in 1979 under independent record label 4AD, and quickly grew popular throughout the 80s and mid-90s with a series of EPS and projects. Their influence on Dreampop is basically indescribable as they were a main force within the whole genre with several notable gems to really set the mood for something beautiful

The relationship between Elizabeth and Robin would ultimately prove too much for the band to go on although they’ve already had a huge catalog of songs along with collaborations with This Mortal Coil on "Song to the Siren," a cover of Tim Buckley’s "Song for a Siren," and with American avant-garde composer Harold Todd on the album The Moon and the Melodies just to name a few. Their presence in the genre had a profound impact on artists such as The Weeknd who sampled one of their most popular songs "Cherry-Colored Funk" on his song "The Knowing" in 2011 along with another sample from Siouxsie and the Banshees on "Happy House." A few other artists such as Antwon, Martika, and The Field have only proven how innovative and different The Cocteau Twins’ sound was at the time, as the 90s were mostly being driven by genres such as Grunge Rock, bubblegum Pop, and Hip-Hop, not Dream Pop, so for them to come out when they did was a huge surprise to many in the music industry, and will continue to prove how music knows no bounds.

Slowdive

From Left: Simon Scott, Nick Chaplin, Rachel Goswell, Christian Savill, Neil Halstead

We go across the wonderful pond yet again for Slowdive, the “offspring” of what The Cocteau Twins became known for. Forming in Reading, Berkshire in 1989, Slowdive has been able to elevate the out-of-this-world melodies and sounds even higher, and cementing their place in the forbidden world of alternative shoegaze (another word for Dream Pop) with an amazing collection of songs. Although they weren’t as mainstream in the US like their counterparts The Cocteau Twins or My Bloody Valentine, they managed to set themselves apart from the rest with 90s inspired tunes such as "When the Sun Hits," "Shine," "Dagger," and "Primal."

Only releasing three official projects before disbanding in 1995, they’ve proved that they’re always going to be culturally known among fans, because of their blissful 90s mood makers that still live in people’s memories today. without them, we probably wouldn’t have bands such as The 1975, or the group I’m talking about next.

Alvvays

From left: Alec O'Hanley, Molly Rankin, Liam Corcoran, and Kerri MacLellan

Next we have Alvvays, a Canadian indie pop band forming in 2011. They all are from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, but are based in Toronto, Ontario with all parties being involved in other musical ventures before the formation. Not much to say about this amazing group since the music speaks for what vibes the group is always going for, the awkward but upbeat adolescent-inspired vibes with very interesting melodies and sounds. They’ve so far released two projects, including their self-titled Alvvays (2014) and Antisocialites (2017), which are personal favorites and gives me hope for their continued success in the future

DIIV

Now we go to the heart of Brooklyn, New York with DIIV who formed in 2011. This group is has a very post-punk California-ish summer feel throughout their music, which is really common among alternative dreampop artists/groups coming up who are either from Cali, or who are just from America, but aren’t from California in particular, but nonetheless they’ve proved themselves to be mainstream successes with their two projects Oshin (2012) and Is the Is Are (2017), which are also personal favorites. With the amount of popularity they have among today’s youth of music hipsters, this group seems to be doing very great for themselves (music-wise that is), and plan to release another album later this year without their former bandmate based off sexist, racist, and homophobic comments he’s made according to a recent article by Pitchfork published last month

My Bloody Valentine

From Left: Colm Ó Cíosóig, Bilinda Butcher, Kevin Shields, and Debbie Googe

Lastly we have the iconic Irish Dream Pop group My Bloody Valentine who formed in 1983 in Dublin, Ireland. MBV redefined what noise meant within the context of regular songwriting like the acts that came before them such as Velvet Underground, Sonic Youth, and the Jesus and Mary Chain with their raw and mesmerizing all-studio projects beginning with the release of several EPs in the mid-80s before recording the groundbreaking Isn't Anything in 1988, a record that merged the euphoric, ethereal melodies of the Cocteau Twins with crushingly loud, shimmering distortion. Though My Bloody Valentine rejected rock & roll conventions, they’ve made their mark on the post-punk scene of the 80s and much of the 90s, which helped them become the group they’re known as today

I hope you liked this list and I’ll be doing a part two soon, thank you for reading, and good day. Here’s a video on some albums to get you aquatinted with this awesome genre:

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About the Creator

Jayla McKiver

Hello everyone, I’m Jayla and I love to tell stories whether they be informative or just for fun. I’m interested in a number of different things and go about life with a positive mindset, hope you like my posts and have a good laugh too 😎

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