A reference to Spacemen 3 perhaps?
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IMO there’s really no use in trying to distinguish band genres based on what the bands sound only. Genres are made from scenes, or movements of like minded artists that exist in the same time and usually in the same place. Grindcore and death metal, indistinguishable for the first few years until death metal started to mutate into it’s own thing in places like Florida, Stockholm etc. while grindcore morphed into it’s own thing. Same thing with black metal and death metal, the myriad of punk subgenres and so on.
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We really lose so much good art from converging into online spaces over physical.
Yes, it’s not entirely barren, but most humans do better being in the presence of other humans.
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Yeah, for sure! It’s so easy to listen to a huge bunch of older bands representing a regional style from 20 years ago and start a band that sounds like them, but never having any like minded new bands to play with and exchange ideas, form a shared sound, maybe a scene etc. Evolving naturally thru inspiration from other bands around you I think is a really great way not to get stuck in a rut of repeating the same album over and over again.
I mean you can even see what gear they used back in the day and buy all the same shit and get their exact sound. There’s a bunch of new-ish shoegaze bands here in Finland who all have “the sound” down perfectly. Great to get more of the same, or boring?
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I dont know, where I came from Shoegaze was a well recieved lable for bands who liked stoned psychedelic music and couldn’t give two shits about their personal image or stage presence as an individual.
It was about stoned bands high as fuck with a bunch of pedals they were looking at hence “shoegazing”
In our town we loved the term shoegaze, but preferred space rock.
In many ways they are essentially the same.
I’m definitely bored by all the new kids who simply want to copy the past.
Bands like the Horrors and Viet Cong may wear their influences yet they transcend it to new places.
Show gaze is DEFINITELY not limited to MBV and Slowdive.
Never like slowdive either, boooooring
For me thats the ultimate in progression.
Shamless plug…first band
5th band
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I think this is shoegaze, gonne see them twice this year 
stockholm and amsterdam
Such an incredible album, and criminally ignored by their label, the press and the public at the time it was released. Blue Skied an’ Clear still gives me the shivers every time the 20 some-odd years later.
Ejector Seat Reservation is my favourite albums! Didn’t think much of 99th Dream or Future Ruins, but Born To Lose You is also great.
Then again, I am a Dad who (still) likes to rock…
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Heh, they’re not completely unlistenable, but I much prefer the first two albums.
Dreampop
It’s shoegaze. Right? Isn’t it. But where/who coined Dreampop?
Telescopes
CocteauTwins
Alison’s Halo
A Shoreline Dream
etc
Used to love Shoegaze music. Still enjoy the classics but I’m no longer plundering the archives and listening to the latest ‘nu-gaze’ releases.
The genre also got me into an obsession with guitar pedals with led to a fascination with sound design, leading me to where I am now as an electronic music obsessive.
I wrote my uni dissertation on shoegaze - it’s called ‘Look in the Mirror: A Psychoanalytical Evaluation of Shoegaze Music’. My lecturer was also hugely influenced by shoegaze, so it was great to bounce back and forth with him on the subject. If anyone would like a copy of the dissertation (bearing in mind it’s 10,000 words long) reach out and I’ll send a PDF.
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I don’t remember dreampop being a thing when the Cocteaus were about - I think the term came about more recently? Still, I put the scene mostly down to the Cocteaus, and Robin Guthrie sharing the love with his production work with other bands at the time.
That Soundpool track is lovely by the way. Not heard of them before, has a bit of a C86/Sarah feel to it.
Talking of Sarah Records, here’s a cracking bit of shoegaze from Secret Shine:
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same thing but with less emphasis on guitar
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yes please!
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Some GREAT mentions so far particularly Flying Saucer Attack, Seefeel and Bowery Electric.
Gonna throw a bit of a curveball here;
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I always thought the band Love Spirals Downward shared that 80’s 4AD sound. I think they were from the Pacific west coast:
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Good Choice. I have that album.
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Nice - another band I hadn’t heard of! Leaning a bit more in the dark/gothy direction, definitely getting some 4AD vibes here, not to mention All About Eve.
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